Dembele hits hat-trick as France thrash second string Norway at World Cup

Ousmane Dembele scored one of the earliest hat-tricks in World Cup history on Friday as the Ballon d’Or winner starred in France’s 4-1 win over a second-string Norway, while Erling Haaland watched on from the bench.

Paris Saint-Germain forward Dembele opened the scoring in the seventh minute at the Gillette Stadium near Boston, struck again on 20 minutes and, after Thelo Aasgaard had pulled one back, he made it 3-1 in the 32nd minute.

The only player to complete a hat-trick earlier in a World Cup match is Erich Probst, who got three inside the first 24 minutes for Austria against Czechoslovakia in 1954.

Dembele moves on to four goals at the tournament after also scoring in the 3-0 win over Iraq on Monday, and his display here will perhaps ease some of the pressure on captain Kylian Mbappe to always be France’s match-winner.

Desire Doue completed the scoring late on, and the victory allowed France to end the group stage with the maximum nine points — they have scored 10 goals in three games and advance as Group I winners.