France in the top position in group I of the 2026 World Cup, Norway with Haaland eliminated; Senegal is still fighting for 3rd place

 Ousmane Dembélé scored the fastest hat trick in World Cup history, scoring three goals in the first half, and France dominated a significantly weakened Norway to win 4-1 yesterday, securing top spot in Group I. The Norwegians made as many as 10 changes to their lineup before this match, including the absence of Erling Haaland and captain Martin Ødegaard. The French made it clear early in the match that they would dominate when Kylian Mbappé hit the crossbar in the first action of the match. Seven minutes later, France took the lead and Dembélé began his hat trick, taking advantage of being left alone on the right wing. In the 20th minute, Dembélé again received a lot of space from the Norwegian defenders and increased the lead to 2-0. The Norwegians responded with a goal 81 seconds later, reducing the deficit to 1-2. However, 11 minutes later, Dembélé made it 3-1, scoring his second goal with his left foot. Dembélé's hat trick, scored in the 32nd minute, is the second fastest in the history of the World Cup - only Austrian Erich Probst scored three goals faster, who scored a hat trick in 24 minutes in a match against Czechoslovakia in 1954. Dembélé is now only the third player in World Cup history to score a hat trick, joining only Just Fontaine (twice in 1958) and Kylian Mbappé (2022). Dembélé's three goals in the current tournament currently make him second in the scoring charts, behind Leo Messi, who scored 5 goals. Dembélé currently has the same number of goals as Vinícius Júnior and Erling Haaland. In the second match of Group I, Senegal defeated weakened Iraq 5-0 and also advanced to the knockout phase. Habib Diarra opened the scoring in the 4th minute, and Ismaïla Sarr, Pape Gueye and Iliman Ndiaye scored three goals in the second half. Iraq played with ten men for most of the match after Rebin Sulak was shown a red card in the 10th minute. --- ## Related Articles 1. [Paraguay and Australia Secure Knockout Spots in World Cup 2026](https://pitchpulsemedia.com/en/news/paraguay-and-australia-secure-knockout-spots-in-world-cup-2026) 2. [Walang Problema sa Antas ng Laro sa Pinalawak na World Cup 2026](https://azkalsgoal.com/fil/news/walang-problema-sa-antas-ng-laro-sa-pinalawak-na-world-cup-2026)