Day 7 Briefing: Messi, Mbappé and Haaland all land first blows

The tournament's first heavyweight day landed exactly as billed: Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland all scored, and none of their teams blinked. The late match also matters: Austria's 3-1 win over Jordan means Group J already has a clean split between two three-point teams and two zero-point teams before Argentina vs. Austria next week. 1

Scoreboard: June 16 matches now final

Group	Match	Venue	Scorers	Source
I	France 3-1 Senegal	East Rutherford, New Jersey	France: Kylian Mbappé 66', 90+6', Bradley Barcola 82'. Senegal: Ibrahim Mbaye 90+5'.	ESPN match report
I	Iraq 1-4 Norway	Foxborough, Massachusetts	Iraq: Aymen Hussein 39'. Norway: Erling Haaland 29', 43', Leo Østigard 76', Aymen Hussein 90+6' own goal.	ESPN match centre
J	Argentina 3-0 Algeria	Kansas City, Missouri	Argentina: Lionel Messi 17', 60', 76'.	ESPN match report
J	Austria 3-1 Jordan	Santa Clara, California	Austria: Romano Schmid 21', Yazan Al-Arab 76' own goal, Marko Arnautovic 90+12' pen. Jordan: Ali Olwan 50'.	ESPN match centre

Austria players celebrate after beating Jordan — Austria's return to the World Cup ended with a 3-1 win over Jordan; BBC Sport reported it as Austria's first finals win since 1990. 2

What changed in the groups

Group	Current shape	Why it matters	Source
I	Norway lead on goal difference with 3 points and +3; France also have 3 points at +2.	France still won comfortably, but Norway's 4-1 margin gives them the early tiebreak edge before both face the two beaten sides next.	ESPN France match page
J	Argentina have 3 points and +3; Austria have 3 points and +2; Jordan and Algeria are chasing.	Argentina vs. Austria on Monday is already a first-place game. Jordan's goal difference is still recoverable because Algeria lost by three.	ESPN Austria match page
A-H	Mexico, Scotland, USA, Germany and Sweden are the clearest early leaders; Groups B, G and H are still tied across all four teams.	The expanded format keeps third place alive, but the groups with early winners already have pressure on the winless sides in the second round.	NBC Sports standings

Today's fixtures: June 17, all times ET

Time	Match	Group	Venue	Why to watch	Source
1:00 p.m.	Portugal vs. DR Congo	K	Houston Stadium, Houston	Cristiano Ronaldo's sixth World Cup begins against a DR Congo side that can make Group K awkward immediately.	ESPN schedule
4:00 p.m.	England vs. Croatia	L	Arlington, Texas	England get a familiar tournament problem first up: Croatia's midfield control and game management.	ESPN schedule
7:00 p.m.	Ghana vs. Panama	L	Toronto	Group L can tilt quickly if the England-Croatia loser also has to chase a Ghana or Panama win.	ESPN schedule
10:00 p.m.	Uzbekistan vs. Colombia	K	Mexico City	Colombia can make Portugal chase from day one; Uzbekistan get their opener at altitude.	ESPN schedule

FIFA's official fixtures page also lists the same four next fixtures after the completed France, Norway, Argentina and Austria matches. 3

Injury watch

Christian Pulisic leaves the USA opener as a calf issue becomes a short-term watch item — Pulisic's calf issue is not described as serious, but the USA's June 19 match against Australia makes the short turnaround the story. 4

Player	Team	Latest status	Next match affected	Source
Christian Pulisic	United States	A calf knock forced him off at half-time against Paraguay; Mauricio Pochettino said the staff avoided risk and hoped it was "not a big issue."	USA vs. Australia, June 19	The Independent via Yahoo Sports
Neymar	Brazil	Grade two calf injury; missed Brazil's opener, with Carlo Ancelotti saying the expectation was that he could rejoin group training the following week.	Brazil vs. Haiti, June 19	The Independent via Yahoo Sports
Alphonso Davies	Canada	Missed the 1-1 draw with Bosnia and Herzegovina, but Jesse Marsch said an MRI showed "very positive signs."	Canada vs. Qatar, June 18	The Independent via Yahoo Sports
Bukayo Saka	England	Managing an Achilles issue; Thomas Tuchel said England were still building him up after he appeared in the final friendly.	England vs. Croatia, today	The Independent via Yahoo Sports

Three storylines to carry into the day

1. Messi has put the Golden Boot race on fast-forward. His hat trick against Algeria made it 16 career World Cup goals, level with Miroslav Klose's record, and it came before Argentina had to overextend itself. That is a dangerous combination: minutes managed, record matched, three points banked. 5

2. France still have a first-half problem. Senegal hit the post before half-time, and ESPN's France report said Senegal outshot France 5-1 before the break. France then outshot Senegal 10-1 in the second half and won 3-1. That ceiling is obvious; the slow start is also real. 6

3. Norway are not just Haaland. Haaland's brace will get the clips, but Norway also had 61% possession, 5 shots on goal and a third goal from centre-back Leo Østigard before the late own goal. Group I now has two favorites with different strengths: France's individual match-winners and Norway's blunt, structured attack. 7

Erling Haaland arrives before Norway's World Cup opener against Iraq — Reuters photographed Haaland before Norway's first World Cup match since 1998; he then scored twice in the 4-1 win. 8

Bottom line

If you only watch one match today, make it England vs. Croatia at 4 p.m. ET. Portugal-DR Congo has the Ronaldo hook, but England-Croatia is the better early test of a contender's floor: can England control a match against a team that still knows how to slow tournaments down?