Ousmane Dembele’s three consecutive goals for France just 25 minutes apart against Norway on Friday marked the fastest hat trick in World Cup history since 1954 and put him in the Golden Boot race with teammate Kylian Mbappe, who also netted four scores in Group I play.
Norway, meanwhile, had little confidence in its ability to beat the tournament favorite and lined up with 10 reserve players, leaving Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard, and eight other regular starters on the bench to avoid injuries or infractions ahead of its round of 32 match against the Ivory Coast in Dallas.
“I couldn’t care too much,” Haaland told a Fox Sports reporter inside Boston Stadium before the game when asked about the lineup changes. “We’re through, and that’s all I care about. [France is] probably going to win.”
Les Bleus, which is loaded with depth and started many of its top players, accomplished its goal—a win or a draw—to play at New York New Jersey Stadium on June 30.
“We’ll stay focused,” a smiling Dembele told a FIFA interviewer after the match. “We have our families here, and we’ll have a great time together.”
France was all over Norway from the start. Less than 30 seconds in, Mbappe rocked the left post from a right-wing shot, the ball only missing the inside of the net by inches.
Dembele opened up the scoring in the sixth minute, slaloming the ball to the inside and forcing Norwegian defenders to back up before smashing it past goalkeeper Egil Selvik.
The right-winger netted his second goal from distance, accelerating into the box even after a Norwegian defender grabbed his jersey, pivoting from right to left and firing the ball into the back of the net again.
Norway got one back in the 21st minute after Thelo Aasgaard controlled a square pass in front of the goal, juked French defender Dayot Upamecano, faked a shot to the left, and finished by releasing the ball into the right side of the net.
Dembele’s third goal came at the 32-minute mark. He cut into Norway’s penalty box with pace, once again shifting the ball with small, quick touches with the inside and outside of his foot as defenders backed up, hoping to contain him, before rifling the shot.
In the second half, Norway had a chance to narrow the margin after winger Oscar Bobb was tripped by Theo Hernandez in front of the French goal. The penalty kick taker, Jorgen Strand Larsen, focused on placement over power, and French goalkeeper Mike Maignan easily collected the ball headed toward the right post.
The final goal came in second-half stoppage time. Substitute Bradley Barcola’s precise cross found the head of Desire Doue, who was unmarked in the box, and easily put the ball past Selvik.
French head coach Didier Deschamps was absent due to his mother’s funeral. Assistant Coach Guy Stephan congratulated the squad for its unselfish, collective, and remarkably skillful play on such an emotional day.
“We have a great team with sparkle, and it can shine,” he said through a FIFA interpreter during the postgame press conference. “There’s a lot of dribbling; there’s a lot of one-twos [passing combinations].”
Norway coach Stale Solbakken made no apologies for not using his best players against what might be the best team in the world right now. He said the coaching staff, medical staff, and the players themselves arrived at this decision.
“It was a no-brainer,” he said during the post-game press conference. “They all said it would be difficult for many of them. We are here to proceed as long as we can.”
