Ousmane Dembélé answers World Cup doubts with hat-trick

Ousmane Dembélé has ended the World Cup group stage with his position in France’s attack strengthened. After a quiet opening match raised questions about his place, the Paris Saint-Germain forward helped Les Bleus finish first in Group I and qualify for the knockout stage with a perfect record of three wins.

Dembélé scored three times in France’s 4-1 victory over Norway in Foxborough, completing the group campaign with four tournament goals. That total puts him level with Kylian Mbappé. The performance followed France’s earlier 3-0 win against Iraq, when Dembélé contributed a goal and an assist.

His tournament began with a less influential display against Senegal in France’s 3-1 victory. Used centrally behind Mbappé before moving to the right, he struggled to affect the game and became the subject of debate over whether Didier Deschamps should leave him out. Mbappé defended his teammate, while Pascal Dupraz argued that continuing with Dembélé was important.

The response has been emphatic. Dembélé’s treble against Norway delivered France’s third successive group victory, while his own return to form has added another attacking option for the holders of consecutive Champions League titles with PSG. He had also said the Norway performance, despite the three goals, did not fully satisfy him and that he preferred his display against Senegal.