France have registered their names in the semifinals of the ongoing FIFA World Cup after they beat Morocco with a scoreline of 2-0 in their quarterfinal match at the Boston Stadium.
Just like Lionel Messi in the round of 16 against Egypt, his former PSG teammate Mbappe also missed a penalty but scored a superb goal to give his team the crucial lead in the match.
His goal was followed by another strike by current Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembele.
The 27-year-old Mbappe has now become the youngest player with 20 appearances at the World Cup. With his strike against Morocoo, Mbappe has now scored 20 goals in the tournament and eight already this season as he battles the likes of Messi (also 8) and Erling Haaland (7) for the Golden Boot.
"That’s three (semi-finals) in a row — it’s good," France's head coach Didier Deschamps said after the match, as per Reuters. "It seems logical and natural, but you still have to get the job done. It was tricky, the penalty... when it’s Kylian. He never has any doubts."
"But we’re exactly where we wanted to be," the France head coach also said, adding, "We’re taking another step forward today, finding ourselves in the final four once again. It shows we’re right there in the mix."
The match against Morocco was a repeat of the semi-final in the 2022 edition of the tournament. The remaining quarterfinal matches are as follows: Spain vs Belgium; England vs Norway; and Argentina vs Switzerland.
"We are very disappointed, we wanted to advance," said Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi after the match. "We have to recognise that France is a great team with excellent players. France had the better scoring opportunities. We lacked ideas and freshness, and we have to accept this defeat."
"Today France were stronger but we are able to compete and progress and maybe eliminate them in four years' time," Ouahbi said as per Reuters.
“Of course we need to take stock of the situation if we want to progress; it's essential,” Ouahbi added. "We cannot just say that we're happy and proud of what we've done. We need to move forward, and in order to do so, we have to be objective and to do some self-criticism."
Mbappe's minor ankle injury
After scoring his eighth goal of the tournament, Mbappe was taken off by Deschamps in the 77th minute of the match. He later clarified that the injury is a minor one and should not be a cause for concern for France fans.
"I have a minor ankle injury, but I'm completely fine," Mbappe said shortly after the final whistle, as per Reuters. "(Jean-Philippe) Mateta was in a better position to play the remaining minutes of the match and was fitter at that moment. That's all that happened."
"I want them to continue watching the games, giving us the strength," Mbappe said of French fans. "Even though they're not in the stadium, we feel their energy. And we will try to gather the masses for the next matches."
France will next face the winner of the Spain vs Belgium match in the semi-final at Arlington, Texas next Tuesday.
