Man City 2026 World Cup Watch: Rayan Cherki cameo as Haaland absent in France win over Norway | OneFootball

Rayan Cherki featured off the substitutes bench for France in their largely comfortable 1-4 win over Norway to seal top spot in Group I.

Ousmane Dembélé put on a breathtaking display with a 32-minute hat-trick to France to the top of Group I with a dominant victory over a heavily rotated Norway side, setting up an expected last-32 meeting with Sweden.

Anticipation for a showdown between tournament superstars Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland dissolved when the team sheets arrived, as Norway boss Ståle Solbakken made 10 sweeping changes, including resting Manchester City’s forward.

Dembélé brilliantly filled the spotlight by shattering records to deliver the second-fastest World Cup hat-trick from the start of a match in men’s history, trailing only Erich Probst’s 24-minute treble for Austria in 1954. His opening-half explosion also marked the first time a player had netted a first-half treble at the tournament since Russia’s Oleg Salenko achieved the feat against Cameroon in 1994.

Les Bleus established total control from the first whistle and unlocked the Norwegian backline in the seventh minute when Mbappé intercepted possession and fed Dembélé, who clinically lashed the ball past Egil Selvik.

The Paris Saint-Germain winger doubled his tally in the 20th minute, cutting inside from the right flank to cap off a swift counter-attack with a trademark, curling left-footed strike into the far corner.

Though Norway hit back almost instantly when Rangers playmaker Thelo Aasgaard swept home a response just 79 seconds later, Dembélé officially claimed the match ball by again leaving four defenders stranded and curling an identical left-footed beauty home.

Dembélé was granted a well-earned rest when substituted after 65 minutes as the game’s intensity slowed, leaving his PSG teammate Désiré Doué to seal the emphatic victory with a looping, 94th-minute header.

Norway will now face Ivory Coast in the last-32 of the competition.

Erling Haaland match statistics vs France

Unused from the bench.

Rayan Cherki match statistics vs Norway

30 Minutes25 Touches20 Accurate Passes95% Pass Accuracy2 Recoveries2 Accurate Long Balls2 Touches In Opposition Box

Data courtesy of FotMob.