France pair of Kylian Mpappe and Ousmane Dembele have scored 13 goals between them at the 2026 World Cup, a feat not achieved by two players from the same team since Brazil’s Ronaldo and Rivaldo in 2002.
France secured their spot in the FIFA World Cup 2026 semi-finals on Monday after a decisive contribution from their prolific pair of forwards. Mbapp broke the deadlock before Dembele quickly doubled France’s advantage, steering Les Bleus past Morocco in a 2-0 win. The electric French duo have led the French charge in North America, with each forward now arriving at a milestone of real historical weight.
Mbappe’s right-footed finish beyond Yassine Bounou was his eighth goal of the tournament and his 20th in as many World Cup matches. Dembele’s strike was his fifth of the finals, scored after capitalising on his captain’s intelligent decoy movement.
“It’s a position I’m very comfortable in, with France as much as with Paris Saint-Germain,” said Dembele after the game. “I’ve said it already: I’m getting stronger with every match in this competition.”
The two French forwards have now entered one of the World Cup’s most exclusive circles. Mbappe’s eight goals and Dembele’s five mean the French pair are the first players from one national side to both score at least five times in the same edition since Brazil’s 2002 Ronaldo and Rivaldo double act.
The tournament’s past is rich with prolific partnerships that have entered the World Cup hall of fame.
Hungary set the bar high early through Gyorgy Sarosi and Gyula Zsengeller in 1938, then raised it again 16 years later with Sandor Kocsis’ 11 goals and Ferenc Puskas’ four at the 1954 finals. Brazil, meanwhile, had Ademir leading the line in 1950, ably supported by Chico.
The Seleção’s own honour roll is rich with celebrated double acts, from Pele and Vava in 1958 to Pele and Jairzinho in Brazil’s all-conquering side of 1970. Elsewhere, France’s Just Fontaine and Raymond Kopa in 1958, Germany’s Helmut Haller and Franz Beckenbauer in 1966, Poland’s Grzegorz Lato and Andrzej Szarmach in 1974, and Argentina’s Diego Maradona and Jorge Valdano in 1986 all carved out their own places in World Cup lore.
In Korea/Japan 2002, Ronaldo and Rivaldo were similarly decisive as Brazil conquered the world once more, contributing 13 goals between them. Ronaldo led the way with eight to claim the adidas Golden Boot, with Rivaldo close behind on five.
France, naturally, will be dreaming of a fate similar to Brazil’s in 2002. Mbappe and Dembele have already drawn level with Ronaldo and Rivaldo’s combined haul, and with two fixtures still ahead of them (whatever the outcome of the semi-final), they have the chance to move into uncharted territory. No team since the World Cup began in 1930 has finished a campaign with two players each scoring at least six times.
RESULT
Spain 2-1 Belgium
TODAY
Norway v England (10 pm)
S’Eagles Winger Simom Admits Regret at Failed £10m Liverpool Transfer
Nigeria winger, Moses Simon has reflected on his aborted move to Liverpool in 2018, with the player having questioned why a £10 million switch fell through.
Simon was firmly on Liverpool’s radar as they looked to bolster Jurgen Klopp‘s attack ahead of the 2018/19 campaign, with a £10 million offer mooted.
That pursuit was abandoned and Xherdan Shaqiri instead made the move to Anfield to support the likes of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane in the wide areas.
In an interview with Urban Dwell Sport, Simon has now expressed his regret at failing to complete a transfer to Liverpool from KAA Gent.
“I was supposed to go to Liverpool. It didn’t work,” he said, per Soccernet.ng.
“In my head, I was like, ‘is it the agent or the club? I don’t want to play’.
“So I was putting it in my head: ‘Whether I play or I don’t play, I don’t care’.
“I thought if I don’t play, the club will find a way quickly to sell me. The club bought me for €1 million, but after one year, they wanted €25 million.”
Having seen interest from Liverpool, Tottenham, Brighton, Lyon, Fulham and Hull fail to develop into a move between 2016 and 2018, Simon’s career instead took him to Spain.
It has led to a more modest pathway which has seen him play for Levante, Nantes and now Paris FC, with his only experience of the Champions League coming while still at Gent in 2015/16.
Simon now acknowledges that effectively downing tools and sacrificing his form in a bid to engineer a move was a mistake. “If I was an experienced player [at the time], I would have pushed for everything because the more you play, the more market value you have,” he continued.
“So every young player out there, whether there’s a rumour or no rumour, just give everything.
“A transfer can come, and you go. If it doesn’t come, continue because your club is paying you. This is the contract you signed.”
