Tournament heavyweights France put on a clinical masterclass at Gillette Stadium, crushing a heavily rotated Norway side 4-1 to secure the top spot in Group I with a flawless record.
Meanwhile, over in Toronto, Senegal weaponized their numerical advantage to demolish a 10-man Iraqi squad 5-0, keeping their hopes of advancing to the Round of 32 alive through the wildcard tracking system.
Dembélé’s 25-Minute Blitz Obliterates Rotated Norway
With both European nations having mathematically secured qualification for the knockout rounds prior to kick-off, Norway manager Ståle Solbakken took a massive gamble by making ten changes to his starting eleven. Superstars Erling Haaland and Martin Ødegaard were left on the bench to rest for the Round of 32, a decision that ultimately backfired as Les Bleus fielded a full-strength lineup to maintain tournament momentum.
The night belonged completely to Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembélé, who blew the tournament’s Golden Boot race wide open with an incredibly rapid first-half hat-trick. Dembélé found the back of the net in the 7th and 20th minutes, capitalising on sharp service from Kylian Mbappé. Though Norway’s Thelo Aasgaard briefly pulled one back, Dembélé completed his three-goal masterclass in the 32nd minute following a beautiful sequence where all 11 French players touched the ball.
Norway did show flashes of life after the interval, earning a golden opportunity to make it 3-2 when Oscar Bobb was tripped inside the box. However, Jørgen Strand Larsen’s penalty was comfortably stopped by Mike Maignan. Stoppage time saw second-half substitute Désiré Doué head home a fourth to seal the 4-1 rout.
Red Card Sparks Historic 5-Goal Blast for Senegal
In Toronto, Senegal made World Cup history by becoming the first African nation to score five goals in a single match at the tournament, comprehensively defeating Iraq 5-0 to finish third in Group I.
The Lions of Teranga opened the scoring early when Habib Diarra nodded in an Abdoulaye Seck header. Iraq’s hopes of a comeback vanished just minutes later when English referee Anthony Taylor brandished a straight red card to an Iraqi defender following a VAR review for a last-man foul on Sadio Mané. It stood as the earliest ejection of the tournament.
Against ten men, Senegal ran riot in the second half. Villarreal midfielder Pape Gueye took center stage, smashing home a phenomenal half-volley before doubling his personal tally 12 minutes later to make it 4-0. With eight minutes left on the clock, Everton’s Iliman Ndiaye joined the party, cutting inside to fire a rocket into the roof of the net.
The emphatic 5-0 triumph pushes Senegal’s goal difference to +2, putting them in an exceptionally strong position to claim one of the eight wildcard berths for the Round of 32, while Graham Arnold’s Iraq exit North America without a single point.