Mbappe hits double as France beat Iraq after long storm delay

PHILADELPHIA: Kylian Mbappe marked his 100th appearance for France by scoring twice in a 3-0 World Cup win over Iraq on Monday in a match that was delayed for more than two hours at half-time because of a severe storm.

Mbappe put France ahead in the 14th minute and struck again nine minutes into the second half after play resumed, while Ousmane Dembele added the third goal in Philadelphia. The result gave the tournament favourites a second straight win in Group I and confirmed their place in the last 32.

The match kicked off at 5:00 pm local time (2100 GMT) at Lincoln Financial Field, but torrential rain late in the first half forced a lengthy stoppage. Supporters were told at the interval to "exit the open seating area and seek shelter in covered areas" as a major storm moved over the city. Most of the 68,324-capacity stadium is uncovered, leaving much of the crowd packed into the concourses while the players remained in the dressing rooms. The second half eventually began more than two hours behind schedule, the first World Cup game at this tournament to be disrupted by bad weather under strict storm protocols in the United States.

Mbappe closes on World Cup scoring mark

Mbappe's latest brace followed another two-goal performance in France's 3-1 opening win over Senegal last Tuesday. The 27-year-old Real Madrid forward and France captain had already become his country's all-time leading scorer against Senegal, moving past Olivier Giroud's previous mark of 57 goals.

He now has 60 goals for Les Bleus in 100 appearances, with 16 of those coming in only 16 World Cup matches. That tally leaves him two behind Lionel Messi, who earlier on Monday set a new World Cup record of 18 goals by scoring twice for Argentina against Austria. Mbappe is now level with Germany's Miroslav Klose on 16 World Cup goals and has also moved beyond the 15 scored by Brazil's Ronaldo.

France take control after restart

France made three changes from the side that beat Senegal, with Bradley Barcola replacing Desire Doue on the left wing, Manu Kone coming in for Aurelien Tchouameni in midfield, and Lucas Digne preferred to Theo Hernandez at left-back.

Mbappe opened the scoring before the quarter-hour when he brought down a pass with his right foot and fired from 20 metres, beating Iraq goalkeeper Ahmed Basil with a powerful effort. Iraq, coached by Graham Arnold, suffered an early setback when captain and striker Aymen Hussein went off after 26 minutes.

After the restart, Iraq gifted France a second goal on 54 minutes. Defender Zaid Tahseen took a goal-kick and tried to play it to Basil, but overhit the pass, allowing Dembele to set up Mbappe for a simple finish. Michael Olise then struck the bar with a chip before the Bayern Munich winger created the third goal for Dembele, who fired in on 66 minutes.

France will next face Erling Haaland's Norway in Boston on Friday in a meeting between the top two sides in the group. Iraq, beaten 4-1 by Norway in their opening match, are facing the prospect of an early exit after losing their first two games. They have now lost all five matches they have played across two World Cups, 40 years apart.