Mbappe Closes on Messi With Two More World Cup Goals

Kylian Mbappe celebrated his 100th France appearance with two goals as the holders’ conquerors of 2022 swept Iraq aside 3-0 on Monday in Philadelphia, booking a place in the last 32 of the 2026 World Cup and keeping pace with Lionel Messi in a brewing duel for the tournament’s scoring crown.

Mbappe broke the deadlock in the 14th minute with a powerful strike from 20 metres that beat Iraq goalkeeper Ahmed Basil, then added a second nine minutes into the second half. Ousmane Dembele, last year’s Ballon d’Or winner, completed the rout on 66 minutes for his first World Cup goal. The win, France’s second from two games in Group I, secured Didier Deschamps’ side qualification with a match to spare.

The contest at the 68,324-capacity Lincoln Financial Field was suspended at half-time for more than two hours as a severe storm swept over the city, the first match at this World Cup halted by bad weather. Having begun in dry conditions, torrential rain forced organisers to order spectators in the largely uncovered stadium to seek shelter in the concourses, in line with the strict lightning protocols enforced across host venues in the United States. Play resumed more than two hours behind schedule.

The 27-year-old Real Madrid forward now has 16 World Cup goals from 16 appearances at the finals, drawing level with Germany’s Miroslav Klose and moving two clear of Brazil’s Ronaldo on the all-time list. He sits two goals behind Messi, who earlier on Monday struck twice in Argentina’s 2-0 win over Austria in Arlington, Texas, to extend his own record to 18 and overtake the mark of 16 he had previously shared with Klose.

Mbappe’s brace followed his two goals in France’s opening 3-1 win over Senegal, a result in which he overtook Olivier Giroud’s tally of 57 to become his country’s all-time leading scorer. He now has 60 goals for Les Bleus in a century of caps.

The win underlined how far the balance has shifted since these sides’ last World Cup campaigns. Iraq returned to the global stage for the first time since 1986, qualifying through the FIFA play-off tournament with a 2-1 win over Bolivia in Monterrey. Their defeat, following a 4-1 loss to Norway in their opener, leaves Graham Arnold’s side facing early elimination and stretches their winless World Cup record to five matches across two appearances 40 years apart. Iraq’s only previous goalscorer at a finals remains Ahmed Radhi, who struck against Belgium in Mexico in 1986.

France made three changes from their opening fixture, with Bradley Barcola, Manu Kone and Lucas Digne coming in. Iraq’s task grew harder when captain Aymen Hussein limped off after 26 minutes. The visitors’ resistance collapsed on 54 minutes when defender Zaid Tahseen miscued a pass intended for Basil, allowing Dembele to tee up Mbappe. Michael Olise struck the bar with a chip before setting up Dembele’s third.

Attention now turns to Friday’s meeting with Erling Haaland’s Norway in Boston, a clash that will decide the Group I winner. Both nations have already secured passage. Norway, who maintained a perfect qualifying record behind Haaland’s 16 goals, reached the finals for the first time since 1998 and edged Senegal 3-2 on Monday.

For Mbappe, the road ahead may yet become a personal pursuit. “I knew Lionel Messi would keep scoring goals at the World Cup,” the France captain said, framing a contest that could define the tournament’s closing weeks.