Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
France booked their place in a third consecutive World Cup semi-final with a clinical 2-0 victory over Morocco at the Gillette Stadium in Boston on Thursday night, but the scoreline does not fully capture the drama of a quarter-final that saw Kylian Mbappe miss a first-half penalty before redeeming himself with a goal and an assist to break the resilience of the Atlas Lions.
The defending champions were utterly dominant from the opening whistle, yet they struggled to find a way past a Moroccan defence that held firm for an hour. France held a staggering 21-4 advantage in shots and an 8-1 edge in shots on target. Morocco, the last African and Arab team standing in the tournament, managed to frustrate the French for long periods before their defensive dam finally burst.
The match turned on a controversial moment in the 25th minute when defender Noussair Mazraoui was adjudged to have chopped down Mbappe in the box. After a protracted VAR check that lasted several minutes, Mbappe stepped up to the spot but saw his weak effort easily saved by the heroic Yassine Bounou. The save sent a jolt of energy through the Moroccan supporters and seemed to unsettle the French, who ended the first half with 13 shots but no goals.
But where lesser teams might have crumbled, France's experience and quality eventually told. On the hour mark, Mbappe made up for his earlier miss with a moment of individual brilliance, curling a stunning right-footed shot past Bounou from the edge of the area to give France a 1-0 lead. Six minutes later, he turned provider, taking a pass and deftly tapping it back for Ousmane Dembele, who strode forward and fired a low finish into the bottom corner to seal the victory.
The 2-0 victory was France's second consecutive World Cup knockout win over Morocco, having beaten the Atlas Lions by the same scoreline in the 2022 semi-finals. More significantly, it keeps Didier Deschamps' men on track to become only the third nation to play in the final of three consecutive World Cups. France will now face the winner of the Spain-Belgium quarter-final in Dallas on Tuesday.
For Morocco, the defeat marks the end of a valiant campaign. Despite being limited to just one shot on goal, they showed incredible defensive resilience and did not make it easy for the French. As the Moroccan outlet MAP noted, the Atlas Lions "leave the competition following a remarkable run" and "fall just short of the semi-finals after once again demonstrating their worth on the world stage". France, however, showed the cold pragmatism of champions, doing just enough to get the job done and keep their World Cup dream alive.
📩 Stone Reporters News | 🌍 stonereportersnews.com
✉️ info@stonereportersnews.com | 📘 Facebook: Stone Reporters News | 🐦 X (Twitter): @StoneReportNew | 📸 Instagram: @stonereportersnews
Add comment
Comments