Philadelphia, 23 June (H.S.):

France secured their place in the Round of 32 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 with a convincing 3-0 victory over Iraq on Tuesday. The match was highlighted by a brilliant performance from captain Kylian Mbappé and a lengthy weather delay caused by severe storms and heavy rain.

Mbappé played a pivotal role in France's victory, scoring his second brace of the tournament. Nearly three hours separated his two goals, as the start of the second half was delayed by almost two hours due to adverse weather conditions in the area.

With his two goals, Mbappé took his overall FIFA World Cup tally to 16, equalling the record of former Germany striker Miroslav Klose. Earlier in the tournament, Argentina captain Lionel Messi had reached a new World Cup record of 18 goals after scoring twice against Austria.

Mbappé has now scored four goals in this World Cup and trails Messi by just one goal in the race for the Golden Boot.

France dominated proceedings from the outset and opened the scoring in the 14th minute. Receiving a pass from Michael Olise, Mbappé unleashed a superb strike from outside the penalty area that Iraq goalkeeper Ahmed Basil was unable to stop.

The second half began after a lengthy weather delay, but Iraq struggled to regain momentum. In the 54th minute, Ousmane Dembélé capitalised on a defensive error and set up Mbappé with a simple finish for his second goal of the match.

Dembélé then got on the scoresheet himself in the 66th minute, extending France's lead to 3-0. The reigning Ballon d'Or winner controlled another excellent pass from Michael Olise before calmly finding the back of the net.

The weather also became a major talking point during the match. Heavy rain and thunderstorms began just before halftime, prompting officials to move spectators to designated safe areas inside the stadium. Approximately one hour and 40 minutes later, the players returned for warm-ups, and play resumed after ground staff cleared standing water from the pitch.

With the victory, France confirmed their place in the knockout stage and further strengthened their credentials as one of the leading contenders for the FIFA World Cup 2026 title.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar