France secured their passage to the World Cup semi-finals as they defeated Morocco 2-0 at the Gillette Stadium in Boston.
Kylian Mbappe atoned for his first half penalty miss by breaking the deadlock with a spectacular finish and Ousmane Dembele added a quickfire second as the two-time world champions dispatched the Atlas Lions with a minimum of fuss.
Dayot Upamecano had a gilt-edged opportunity to put France ahead inside the opening five minutes, only for the defender to head the ball straight at Yassine Bounou before Morocco cleared.
Clear-cut chances were at a premium for both sides when Les Bleus initiated a blistering counter-attack after Desire Doue dispossessed Achraf Hakimi. Michael Olise scampered forward and fed Mbappe, who was hacked down by Noussair Mazraoui in the penalty area.
There was a significant delay between the penalty being awarded and the penalty being taken, which worked against Mbappe as the French forward produced a tame spot-kick that Bounou comfortably saved.
The second half began in a similar fashion to the first, albeit with Morocco demonstrating greater urgency without troubling France's backline.
It was going to require a moment of ingenuity to break the deadlock and who else but Mbappe to provide it. France's all-time record goalscorer produced a sensational curling effort around Issa Diop and into the far right corner.
Spaces began to open up for France in the aftermath of the goal and they capitalised to full effect as Dembele strode towards goal, used Mbappe's decoy run to drift onto his right foot and bend an effort into the corner which Bounou could only parry into his own net.
The result means the tournament favourites are the first team into the final four, and Mbappe's eighth goal of this World Cup moves him level with Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot.
Take a look at our player ratings and match stats below.
France Player Ratings
- Mike Maignan - 7
- Jules Kounde - 7
- Dayot Upamecano - 7
- William Saliba - 7
- Lucas Digne - 7
- Manu Kone - 8
- Adrien Rabiot - 7
- Ousmane Dembele - 8
- Michael Olise - 7
- Desire Doue - 7
- Kylian Mbappe - 8
Substitutes:
- Warren Zaire-Emery - 6
- Jean-Phillippe Mateta - 6
- Bradley Barcola - 6
- Malo Gusto - 6
Morocco Player Ratings
- Yassine Bounou - 7
- Achraf Hakimi - 6
- Issa Diop - 6
- Noussair Mazraoui - 6
- Anass Salah-Eddine - 5
- Ayyoub Bouaddi - 5
- Neil El Aynaoui - 6
- Azzedine Ounahi - 6
- Brahim Diaz - 6
- Chemsdine Talbi - 5
- Bilal El Khannouss - 5
Substitutes:
- Sofyan Amrabat - 5
- Soufiane Rahimi - 6
- Gessime Yassini - 6
- Zakaria El Ouahdi - 6
- Amine Sbai - N/A
France v Morocco Match Stats
France | Morocco | |
48% | Possession | 52% |
3.05 | Expected Goals | 0.14 |
22 | Shots | 5 |
8 | Shots on Target | 1 |
5 | Big Chances | 0 |
1 | Goalkeeper Saves | 6 |
5 | Corners | 5 |
485 | Total Passes | 524 |
89% | Pass Accuracy | 86% |
8/11 | Tackles | 6/17 |
22 | Clearances | 12 |
0 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
0 | Red Cards | 0 |
France v Morocco Timeline
28' - Kylian Mbappe missed penalty.
60' - Goal France! Scored by Kylian Mbappe, assisted by Desire Doue.
62' - Sofyan Amrabat replaced Ayyoub Bouaddi, Sofiane Rahimi replaced Bilal El Khannouss.
63' - Yellow card for Issa Diop.
66' - Goal France! Scored by Ousmane Dembele, assisted by Kylian Mbappe.
71' - Warren Zaire-Emery replaced Manu Kone.
74' - Gessime Yassini replaced Brahim Diaz, Zakaria El Ouahdi replaced Anass Salah-Eddine.
77' - Jean-Philippe Mateta replaced Kylian Mbappe, Bradley Barcola replaced Desire Doue.
85' - Amine Sbai replaced Chemsdine Talbi.
87' - Malo Gusto replaced Jules Kounde.
