So far in the World Cup we have seen some great teams, some good teams, and some very bad teams. Today we saw a good team, Norway, play against a great team: France.
Granted, Norway did not play their two stars, Erling Haaland and Martin Ødegaard, but the team is good (and those two players bring them a level up), and it was not bound to be easy for France as the sides clashed for the first spot in Group I.
France were extraordinary in the first half hour, and it was enough to close off the match: three goals by the 2025 Balon d'Or winner, Ousmane Dembele in the first half an hour, was enough to give the French a comfortable lead that could have been more had it not been for goalkeeper Egil Selvik and the Glasgow Rangers' striker Thelo Aasgaard's Norwegian goal.
Ousmane Dembele has scored four goals in the tournament. While attention always seems to focus on Kylian Mbappe, there is no doubt to me who carried the French side; besides his goals, Dembele runs, fights and has the vision to push an already extraordinary side forward.
In the second half France pulled back as Norway vainly pressed forward (and the Scandinavians even missed a penalty kick). The French were nevertheless not done, and in the dying seconds the young PSG player Desire Doué scored his first World Cup goal (having already scored two in the 2025 Champions league final), and I am not afraid to say that it will probably not be his last.
France has in my view stepped into the limelight as favourites to win the title. It is hard to see that anyone can defeat them, but of course, anything can happen as we move into the knock-out stages.
But watch out for the Fantastic Frenchmen!
Norway ends second in the group and will be facing Cote d'Ivoire in what will also be a great match.
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