World Cup: France go through on Gusto's tournament debut | News | Official Site

Malo Gusto made his first appearance at the FIFA World Cup as France became the latest side to book their spot in the last 32 with another confident display to beat Iraq 3-0, despite the game being suspended for more than two hours because of bad weather.

Malo Gusto started among the France substitutes for this match in Philadelphia, just as he had for their opening game of this tournament, a 3-1 win over Senegal in New Jersey. However, on this occasion he got his chance, coming on to replace Jules Kounde with 83 minutes on the clock.

As expected, France – one of the favourites for the tournament even before their impressive win over Senegal – piled on the pressure early, with the Iraqi defenders and goalkeeper even getting in each other’s way in their desperation to clear the ball in the early stages.

It came as no surprise then when it took Kylian Mbappe less than 15 minutes of his 100th appearance for France to make his mark on the game. As soon as he was provided with an ocean of space on the edge of the box, the outcome seems inevitable, as the striker guided his left-footed shot into the top corner to give his country the lead. It was the Real Madrid man’s 11th goal in his last 12 international games.

There had been storm warnings in Philadelphia throughout the day of the game and the heavy rain arrived before the end of the first half. More surprising was the fact that a second goal for France did not.

Although the Europeans continued to dominate the play, Iraq did well to regroup defensively and dig in to begin frustrating their opponents by denying them sights of goal, even if they failed to threaten themselves from their limited chances to counter-attack.

However, it was the weather which was then in control, as the game was suspended at half-time due to the storm drenching Philadelphia. After a break of around two hours, the rain had eased off and the worst of the water had been cleared from the pitch with brooms, allowing play to get back under way.

Iraq briefly seemed to have handled the delay better with a strong start to the second half, but before long they gifted France and Mbappe a second goal. An overhit backpass put the goalkeeper in trouble, allowing Ousmane Dembele to seize possession and square for the striker to tap in his second of the game and fourth of this World Cup.

That goal seemed to sap Iraq’s energy as France then took almost complete control, being unlucky not to extend their lead when Michael Olise hit the crossbar. Indeed, not long after, it was 3-0, Demebele finishing confidently from Olise’s pass to end any hopes of an Iraq comeback. That prompted a number of changes, including Gusto's introduction for his first game at a World Cup.

This game kicked off at 5pm local time and finally concluded at 9pm, when it was France who took the points. Les Bleus knew at the final whistle their place in the last 32 was secure, but top spot will be decided when they take on Norway in their final group game on Friday.