Dembélé hat-trick powers France past Norway in World Cup rout

Ousmane Dembélé stole the show, scoring a hat-trick to lead France to a dominant 4-1 victory over Norway. The win secured France's top spot in Group I of the World Cup. Norway, who rested star striker Erling Haaland, will now face Costa Rica in the next round.

France displayed an aggressive offensive strategy from the start, with Kylian Mbappé hitting the crossbar within the first 20 seconds. Dembélé opened the scoring in the 12th minute after a pass from Mbappé, and then doubled France's lead in the 20th minute with a powerful shot from outside the area. Norway managed to pull one back shortly after through Thelo Aasgaard, but Dembélé completed his hat-trick in the 35th minute, sealing the win for France.

Dembélé's performance was a standout, marking his first World Cup hat-trick and bringing his recent international goal tally to four in two matches. Despite not scoring in previous World Cups, the PSG winger has proven his scoring prowess in this tournament. France's consistent scoring in the World Cup, having scored three or more goals in their last four matches, highlights their attacking strength.

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France have scored 3+ goals in each of their last four FIFA World Cup matches, the longest run by a team since Spain between 1998 and 2002 (4).