France defeated Iraq with a thumping 3-0 win in a weather-affected encounter at the ongoing FIFA World Cup, courtesy of Kylian Mbappé’s brilliance on Tuesday. Mbappé scored two goals, which came nearly three hours apart after thunderstorms delayed the second-half kick-off by almost two hours.
The brace took his overall World Cup tally to 16 goals, levelling him with Germany’s all-time record holder Miroslav Klose.
Just a day earlier, Lionel Messi set a new benchmark with 18 career World Cup goals after scoring a brace for Argentina.
Mbappé’s four goals in the tournament have also placed him just one behind Messi in the race for the 2026 Golden Boot.
With this victory, France have advanced to the round of 32, while Argentina have also booked their place in the knockout stages.
France now top Group L, while Iraq slipped to third place with one loss and one draw.
The clinical finishing from Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé provided much-needed relief for the French side, which had struggled in the build-up to the tournament.
However, while France were clearly destined for victory, bad weather added unexpected drama to the contest before the referee eventually brought the match to a close.
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