Deschamps' side dominant but wasteful before star man delivers
France are through to the World Cup semi-finals for the third tournament running after a composed 2-0 victory over Morocco in Boston on Thursday. It was a repeat of the 2022 semi-final between the same two nations, and the scoreline was the same too — though the performance was far more one-sided this time around.
Didier Deschamps' side racked up 22 attempts to Morocco's five, with an expected goals tally of 3.04 against 0.14. That statistic alone tells you everything about the balance of play. France controlled proceedings almost entirely. And yet the first half somehow ended goalless.
Kylian Mbappe had a penalty saved by Yassine Bounou before the break — a spot-kick taken on his record-equalling 20th World Cup appearance for France. Deschamps later wondered whether an unusual delay before the kick had unsettled his captain.
No matter. On the hour mark, Mbappe collected the ball just inside the box, took a touch, and curled a precise finish into the far corner. It was his eighth goal of the tournament and his 20th in World Cup football overall, drawing him level with Lionel Messi in the all-time standings.
Six minutes later, the tie was dead. Mbappe turned provider, playing in Ousmane Dembele, who drove at a retreating Moroccan defence and rolled a low shot beyond Bounou for his fifth goal of the competition.
Morocco exit as the last African side standing, having also reached the quarter-finals in 2022. For France, the wait continues: their semi-final opponents will be determined by Friday's clash between Spain and Belgium.