Norway 1-4 France: Ousmane Dembele steps out of Kylian Mbappe’s shadow to steal the limelight in Boston as fans are denied World Cup clash of the titans between French captain and rested Erling Haaland

Ousmane Dembele scored a stunning hat-trick in the first half as France beat second-placed Norway 4-1, which left Erling Haaland on the bench, for their third straight win.

France’s style of victory, which clinched their place at the top of Group I and now leaves them facing a Round of 32 meeting with Sweden, has underlined that they are favorites for the tournament.

Norway, whose Jorgen Strand Larsen missed a penalty in the second half, will play Ivory Coast in the first knockout round but many felt cheated as the highly anticipated clash between Kylian Mbappe and Haaland, two of the tournament’s best strikers, was ruled out.

Dembele’s hat-trick took him to four goals in the World Cup and into the heart of the Golden Boot race. Desire Doue added the fourth for France with added time at the end of the game.

PSG star stole the show on a night when others got to shine the brightest in Boston

Why is France the favourite?

I saw them in their last two games against Iraq and Norway and they dazzled in both. Former Scotland winger Pat Nevin has described them as the Harlem Globetrotters of this afternoon’s tournament and it reflects something of their star quality.

When they lunge forward, they do so with astonishing speed and stunning close control. A lot of attention has been paid to Mbappe, but tonight they reminded everyone that they are much more than a one-man team.

Dembele is the last Ballon d’Or winner and he played like it. Shame on the poor defenses that play against these two when they are in this form. Shame on the weak defenses that had to play against Michael Olise when he was in this form. France has so many offensive weapons it’s hard to know which way to look.

Does Norwegian coach Stale Solbakken deserve criticism for resting 10 players, including Haaland, for the match?

The decision destroyed the narrative surrounding the game and sent a wave of disappointment around. Considering it was a team that had not qualified for the World Cup for 28 years, and thousands of fans turned out to see their talisman play, it was hard not to feel cheated by this great display for both them and the world-wide audience.

In Solbakken’s defence, Norway do not have the squad depth that France does and it looks like it will make little difference whether you finish first or second in Group I in terms of the quality of the opposition you face. The group winner’s path to the final currently includes Sweden in the Round of 32, followed by possible fixtures against Germany, the Netherlands and Spain.

The second route will include Ivory Coast, followed by perhaps Brazil, England and Argentina. So Solbakken made his choice, and we learned what it would have been like to discover during the OK Corral gunfight that someone had tied Wyatt Earp to a chair and left him in the living room. Norway’s win over Ivory Coast will vindicate Solbakken’s decision.

Kylian Mbappe (left) became Dembele’s supplier, while Erling Haaland (left) was rested

Was it a wise decision then?

Probably. We’ll never know, but Norway are unlikely to beat France even with Haaland and the rest of the first team on the field. Resting so many players felt like it was against the spirit of the competition, but their first choice will be a fresh squad for Ivory Coast. If they go deeper into the competition, it will be hailed as a bold move.

Is Dembele also in the Golden Shoe race?

Definitely. One of the most impressive things about France’s victory over Iraq in Philadelphia was the way Dembele selflessly passed the ball to Mbappe to score Mbappe’s second goal when Dembele could have scored himself. This indicated a good relationship between the two and a good spirit within the team.

Mbappe returned the favor tonight by scoring two of Dembele’s three goals. Only Lionel Messi currently has more than the French pair, and if France make it all the way to the final they could both have a good chance of beating him.

Dembele, who was beaten twice by Mbappe in the first half, ignited the game played with great dedication.

Dembele was overshadowed when starting this tournament, but now he’s in his peak moment

Do you feel like you’ve been cheated on?

It’s hard to feel cheated after a match like this. Of course, we weren’t allowed to see the Haaland-Mbappe match, but the teams still had one of the most entertaining matches of the World Cup so far, with Dembele scoring the fastest hat-trick in the tournament for 72 years and the second fastest hat-trick of all time.

Norway may have effectively withdrawn from the competition but most fans in Gillette Stadium on Friday will be left with the feeling that they witnessed the next world champions in action.

Where does this leave the race for the Golden Boot?

It strengthens Messi’s position. If he plays against Jordan in Dallas on Saturday, there is every reason to think he will add to his five-goal tally and move away from four-goal scorers including Dembele, Mbappe and Haaland.

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