This happened when France faced Iraq in the World Cup – a match characterized by lightning, thunder and waterlogged turf.
France took six out of a possible six points in Group I in a World Cup match that was anything but easy for Didier Deschamps. Two hours of storm interruptions, a tenacious Iraqi opponent and a pitch that became more and more waterlogged – all added to the burden for the French stars.
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Kylian Mbappe scored twice to break Miroslav Klose’s historic World Cup record of 16 goals. Then Ousmane Dembele made sure to break his own playoff drought – on his 20th cap in a major championship – and punctuated the game for good.
Mbappe gem sent France into the lead – before the storm put an end to it
France dominated the game from the start, and it only took 14 minutes for pure individualism to pay off. Michael Olise – who is quietly building up a remarkable record with five goals in his last three international matches – found Mbappe out on the right. The Real Madrid striker charged the cannon and hammered in an insane left-footed shot that whizzed past goalkeeper Ahmed Basil.
A beautiful goal – and his 15th in a World Cup context. Thus, he becomes only the fourth player in history to reach that milestone, after Messi, Klose and Ronaldo.
Iraq refused to collapse. Ali Al Hamadi, who came on early when Ayman Hussein had to go out with a groin shot, gave the Iraqis a nice anchorage forward. In the 28th minute, he headed just outside the box from a tempting cross from Doski.
Kylian Mbappe of France celebrates after scoring in the World Cup.
Then the heavens opened. Thunder, lightning and pouring rain forced both crews off the pitch just before halftime. Spectators were directed to shelter, while the pitch staff struggled to drain a turf that quickly became impossible to play on.
After almost two hours of interruption, the game resumed – on a pitch so saturated with water that floating football became an almost impossible exercise.
Iraq blunders gave France two quick goals after the break
Iraq started the second half promising on a pitch that suited the underdog. They won midfield battles and began to find ways through the French pressure. But two costly individual errors decided the game within twelve minutes.
After 54 minutes, a short goal kick was played straight into the legs of a French player high up the pitch. Dembele took the ball, showed outstanding team play and laid it perfectly to Mbappe, who could easily roll the ball into an empty net.
Twelve minutes later, Dembele got his own reward. Olise made a sliding pass that sent the winger through alone on the right, and he hammered in a low, hard shot that whizzed past Basil and into the bottom left corner – his very first goal in a World Cup or European Championship, after 20 games in major championships.
France rolled comfortably towards the finish line
Désiré Doué cheers for France.
When the game was decided, Deschamps made big changes. Cherki, Doué, Gusto and Akliouche all got their first taste of World Cup football, while France easily controlled the final minutes. Iraq continued to push forward, and Al Hamadi was just a hair’s length away from a consolation goal in the 76th minute – he headed wide from close range with Maignan outplayed.
Mbappe had one last chance to shine, but hammered over from close range when he came through alone in the 90th minute. Soon after, he was taken off to warm applause – the job was done.
