Kylian Mbappe celebrated his 100th appearance for France with a brace in a 3-0 win over Iraq, becoming the youngest French player to reach the milestone as Les Bleus advanced to the World Cup knockout stage.
by sportswriter Cao Jianjie and Zhang Wuyue
PHILADELPHIA, United States, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Kylian Mbappe has developed a habit of arriving early.
He won the World Cup at 19. He became France captain before turning 25. Last week, he broke his country's all-time scoring record.
On Monday, the 27-year-old reached 100 appearances for France and celebrated with two goals in a 3-0 victory over Iraq that sent Les Bleus into the World Cup knockout stage.
The milestone made Mbappe the youngest French player to reach a century of caps, less than nine years after his international debut.
"It's always a pleasure to be able to play on the national team. There's nothing bigger than the national team. One hundred, that's historic. All the more when it's the World Cup," Mbappe said before the match.
Mbappe marked the occasion familiarly. He opened the scoring in the 14th minute, curling a left-footed shot from 20 yards beyond Iraq goalkeeper Ahmed Basil.
He struck again in the 54th minute after Iraq defender Zaid Tahseen misplaced a pass toward his own goal. Ousmane Dembele collected the loose ball and squared for Mbappe, who finished with his right foot from close range.
Dembele later added France's third as Didier Deschamps' side made it two wins from two in Group I.
There was time for Mbappe to chase a hat-trick, but he missed a late breakaway before being withdrawn in the 90th minute.
The brace lifted his World Cup tally to 16, level with former Germany striker Miroslav Klose and second on the tournament's all-time scoring list.
Lionel Messi moved clear at the top earlier Monday, scoring twice for Argentina to reach 18 World Cup goals.
"If I want to keep up with what Leo is doing, I'll have to do even more," Mbappe said after the match.
"Leo always scores," he added.
Mbappe has four goals in two matches at this tournament, having also scored twice in France's opening 3-1 win over Senegal.
His World Cup record now stands at four goals in 2018, eight in 2022, and four already this year. Like so many great players before him, Mbappe has a way of finding something extra on football's biggest stage.
In Russia, he was a teenager running at defenders without fear. In Qatar, he scored a hat-trick in the final and still ended up on the losing side against Argentina.
In North America, he is carrying a different weight. France arrived as one of the tournament favorites, and Mbappe is no longer surrounded by older leaders. He is one of them.
Deschamps said his influence should not be judged only by the goals.
"He's here to score goals, and that's something he's been doing," Deschamps said.
"He's somebody that has a worldwide aura," he added.
The France head coach also defended Mbappe against criticism that he can be too focused on himself.
"I've seen enough criticism on his egotistical side," Deschamps said. "But that's not who he is. I reiterate, he's the team captain. And he's a bright example for the rest of the group."
Mbappe has also tried to keep the conversation around France's campaign rather than his own records.
"I just want to go down in history for my country," he said before facing Iraq.
France's pursuit of a third World Cup title is gathering momentum. These are early days, but Mbappe has never been one for waiting. ■
