France Secures Semifinal Spot Against Passive Morocco
In a decisive match during the World Cup held in Mexico, Canada, and the USA, France has emerged as the first semifinalist, defeating Morocco in a game that showcased the latter's lack of aggression and initiative on the field. Kylian Mbappé, following in the footsteps of Argentina's Lionel Messi, initially missed a penalty in the quarterfinal match in Boston but later redeemed himself by scoring his eighth tournament goal in the 60th minute. Ousmane Dembélé also contributed significantly to the scoreline, sealing the 2-0 victory just six minutes later.
Didier Deschamps, in what is one of his last games as the coach of the French national team, remarked, "We are now where we wanted to be, and this marks our third consecutive World Cup semifinal appearance. It was not easy, especially with missed opportunities and a missed penalty. However, when you have Kylian Mbappé on your team, there's not much to worry about." Despite being slightly injured and substituted in the 77th minute, Mbappé celebrated the victory, affirming that their main objective is to win games. He reassured fans that his heel injury is not serious.
France boasts a formidable lineup with strong players and diverse egos, and Deschamps' greatest strength lies in his ability to unify them towards a common goal. Right from the start of the match, France demonstrated their dominance, with Mbappé nearly scoring in the fourth minute, only for Moroccan goalkeeper Bono to deflect his shot to the corner. However, Morocco failed to mount any offensive threat, with the shot count standing at 7-0 in favor of France after just 25 minutes. The first significant opportunity for France came when a foul by Moroccan defender Noussair Mazraoui on Mbappé led to a penalty. After a lengthy check by the video assistant referee, Mbappé's penalty attempt resulted in a weak shot saved by Bono, an unfortunate outcome for any penalty taker.
Despite this setback, the match dynamics remained unchanged, with Morocco continuing to play defensively without their injured striker Ismail Saibari. France gradually increased their shot count to 13-0, with a notable attempt from left-back Lucas Digne, whose powerful shot struck the crossbar. Just before halftime, Morocco registered their first shot on target, but Achraf Hakimi's effort went wide of the goal.
France Capitalizes on Moroccan Passivity
During the second half, Morocco attempted to regroup but failed to show any significant improvement in their attacking play. A promising counter-attack fell apart due to a lack of urgency, allowing the French defense to reorganize comfortably. The breakthrough for France came in the 60th minute when Mbappé found space to curl in a brilliant shot, leaving Bono with no chance to save it. Shortly after, Dembélé added to the scoreline with a low shot that Bono could only partially deflect into the net.
Moroccan coach Mohamed Ouahbi showed visible frustration during the game, gesturing animatedly towards the French goal, but his team struggled to create any real opportunities. The closest they came to scoring was a near own goal from Dayot Upamecano. French goalkeeper Mike Maignan finally faced a long-range shot from Azzedine Ounahi in the 83rd minute, but it was an otherwise quiet evening for him.
With this victory, France is set to face the winner of the match between Spain and Belgium in the semifinals. The highly anticipated game will take place in Inglewood near Los Angeles, and it promises to be another thrilling encounter. Meanwhile, Morocco's World Cup journey ends here, with Coach Ouahbi expressing disappointment but urging his players to keep their heads high as they look towards future tournaments, including the Africa Cup, where they aim to reclaim their title. "We have fantastic young players, and we can still develop further," he stated.
As reported by tagesschau.de.
