Ousmane Dembele scored France’s third goal as Les Bleus beat Iraq 3-0 in a storm-delayed World Cup group match at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Monday night.
The Paris Saint-Germain forward struck in the 66th minute, adding to Kylian Mbappe’s brace after a long weather interruption had forced the match into a stop-start rhythm. France still controlled the contest, moving to six points from two Group I games and putting themselves in command of qualification.
Dembele’s finish mattered beyond the scoreline because it gave another PSG attacker a direct tournament contribution, following recent attention on Bradley Barcola and Desire Doue in Didier Deschamps’ attacking rotation. For Luis Enrique, it is another sign that his wide forwards are carrying sharp club form into the summer.
Dembele adds PSG edge to France win
ESPN’s match report recorded Dembele’s goal at 66 minutes, with France finishing the night 3-0 winners and Iraq failing to register a shot on target, according to the full-time report from ESPN.
The weather delay could have flattened France’s tempo, but Dembele’s second-half intervention gave the holders a cleaner finish to the night. It also keeps PSG central to France’s World Cup story, with Dembele now adding end product to a forward line already packed with Paris connections.
