Kylian Mbappe continued his remarkable World Cup form with a brace as France secured a comfortable 3-0 victory over Iraq in a match heavily disrupted by severe weather in Philadelphia.
The French captain struck once in each half to move onto 16 World Cup goals in just 16 appearances, leaving him only two behind the all-time tournament scoring record. His latest display helped France maintain their perfect start to the competition and strengthen their status as one of the leading contenders for the title.
The Group I encounter became the first game of the tournament to be suspended because of severe weather. Lightning in the area forced officials to delay the start of the second half by more than two hours after heavy rainfall had already caused problems for supporters arriving at the stadium earlier in the day.
France made a bright start and took the lead after 14 minutes when Mbappe collected the ball on the edge of the area and curled a precise left-footed effort into the far corner. Despite controlling much of the opening stages, Didier Deschamps’ side found it harder to create clear opportunities after the first-half hydration break.
Iraq grew into the contest and enjoyed longer periods of possession, although they suffered a setback when captain and leading striker Aymen Hussein was forced off through injury.
After the lengthy weather interruption, France returned with renewed energy and doubled their advantage thanks to a costly defensive error. Goalkeeper Ahmed Basil failed to deal with a short goal-kick from defender Zaid Tahseen, allowing Ousmane Dembele to set up Mbappe for a simple finish.
France continued to push forward in search of more goals. Adrien Rabiot missed a free header, while Michael Olise struck the crossbar with an inventive chipped effort. Their pressure eventually paid off when Dembele fired into the bottom corner after being picked out by an outstanding outside-of-the-foot pass from Olise.
The goal marked Dembele’s first at a major international tournament and capped another influential performance from Olise, who delivered two assists and continued his excellent recent run in a France shirt.
Iraq had opportunities to pull a goal back during the closing stages. Rebin Sulaka volleyed over from a Zidane Iqbal corner before Ali Al Hamadi narrowly failed to connect with a dangerous cross from Marko Farji. Mbappe also came close to completing his hat-trick late on but blasted over after breaking clear of the defence.
While the scoreline reflected France’s superior quality, their overall performance highlighted the variety of strengths within Deschamps’ squad. Even after a lengthy weather delay and difficult playing conditions, France remained organised, pressed aggressively and consistently forced mistakes in dangerous areas.
With six points from two matches, France sit comfortably at the top of Group I and appear well positioned to continue their pursuit of a third consecutive World Cup final. Iraq, meanwhile, remain without a point after two games and face an uphill battle to keep their tournament hopes alive.