Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Jun 23: France and Argentina secured their places in the knockout stages of the FIFA World Cup after impressive victories in their respective group matches.

France defeated Iraq 3-0 in a Group I clash at the Philadelphia Stadium to seal qualification for the next round. Kylian Mbappé scored twice, while Ousmane Dembélé added another goal to complete a comfortable victory for the French side.

The match, however, was disrupted by severe thunderstorms that forced a delay of two hours and 12 minutes. Spectators were evacuated from the stadium as officials waited for the weather conditions to improve, while the playing surface was completely affected by the heavy rain.

Earlier, Argentina defeated Austria 2-0 in their Group J encounter in Arlington, United States, to confirm their place in the Round of 32.

Argentina captain Lionel Messi opened the scoring in the 38th minute before adding another goal in stoppage time to secure victory for the defending champions.

With his brace, Messi took his FIFA World Cup goal tally to 18, surpassing Germany’s Miroslav Klose’s previous record of 16 goals and becoming the highest goal-scorer in World Cup history.

The victories ensured that both France and Argentina advanced to the knockout stages of the tournament.