Kylian Mbappe arrives at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia with history in his sights. France's captain broke Olivier Giroud's all-time France goalscoring record during Les Bleus' 3-1 victory over Senegal on matchday one, and now he turns his attention to Iraq — and to the top of the World Cup's all-time scoring charts.

Mbappe closing in on all-time record

Mbappe's winner against Senegal also took him past Just Fontaine's record of 13 goals at World Cup tournaments. He enters this second group game on 14 tournament goals — just two behind joint all-time leaders Lionel Messi and Miroslav Klose — having reached that mark in only 15 matches.

With France already on three points after one game, Didier Deschamps' side can seal their place in the round of 32 with a win today, making the final group fixture against Norway irrelevant. For Mbappe personally, every remaining game is an opportunity to chase down that historic record.

Iraq's uphill task

Iraq are making only their second appearance at a World Cup, and their debut in this edition began with a 4-1 defeat to Norway in Boston. Aymen Hussein gave the Lions of Mesopotamia hope when he cancelled out Erling Haaland's opener late in the first half, but Haaland — of Manchester City — quickly restored the lead before the break. The second half brought further misery, including an Hussein own goal that made him the third player in World Cup history to score at both ends of the pitch in the same match.

Iraq are yet to earn a single point in World Cup history, having also been beaten by Paraguay, Belgium, and Mexico in previous editions. Graham Arnold's side face France for the very first time, and even a point against Les Bleus would rank among the biggest upsets of the summer.

Philadelphia's big stage

Lincoln Financial Field — known locally as the Linc — has already hosted two matches at this World Cup, with Ivory Coast beating Ecuador and Brazil defeating Haiti 3-0 in front of crowds exceeding 68,000. France are the headline act for the third game at the venue.

Deschamps' team were not at their sharpest for stretches of the Senegal match and will be eager to impose themselves from the first whistle. With Mbappe firing and qualification within reach, the pressure falls entirely on Iraq to pull off what would be a stunning result.