France dominates as Norway crumples

France finished as undefeated group champions with a perfect nine points after crushing Norway 4-1 in their final Group I match at Gillette Stadium in Boston. While the match was largely one-sided, it was not short of dramatic moments.

France opened the scoring in the 7th minute. Fed by an in-form Mbappé, Dembélé cut inside from the right to slot the ball into the far corner. In the 20th minute, Dembélé doubled the lead with a spectacular left-footed strike from outside the box, once again assisted by Mbappé.

Just a minute after going down 2-0, Norway pulled one back to get back into the game. Capitalizing on a lapse in the French defense, Thelo Aasgaard fired home from outside the box following an assist from Schjelderup. However, their joy was short-lived. In the 32nd minute, Dembélé cut inside and curled the ball into the net to complete his hat-trick—the second-fastest hat-trick in World Cup history.

Norway attempted a comeback after the interval, earning a penalty following a foul by Theo Hernandez. Jørgen Strand Larsen stepped up to take the spot-kick in the 50th minute, but after a highly hesitant run-up, his weak effort to the right was comfortably saved by goalkeeper Mike Maignan. In the final moments of the match, Désiré Doué sealed the victory with a fourth goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

With the Group I standings finalized, France finishes at the summit with 9 points, while Norway secures second place with 6 points. France will face Sweden in the Round of 16, whereas Norway is set to play against Ivory Coast. Senegal finishes third with 3 points, keeping their hopes of qualifying for the Round of 16 alive as one of the best third-placed teams. Iraq has been eliminated with zero points.