2026 World Cup : Mbappe and Dembele send France into the semifinals
France are still alive. Just like in 2018 and 2022, the Blues are through to the World Cup semifinals. Morocco held firm for a long time on Thursday night in Boston, with Yassine Bounou again outstanding in goal, but France’s pressure finally told after the break. Kylian Mbappe broke the deadlock with a brilliant strike before teeing up the second for Ousmane Dembele. A 2-0 win, and a July 14 date in Dallas against Spain or Belgium.
There is still one worry, though. Mbappe left the pitch a little over 10 minutes from time after taking a knock to his ankle. The France captain’s fitness is sure to dominate the next few days, such was his influence on the outcome of this match.
Bounou delays the inevitable
It took only a few minutes to see how this quarter-final was going to unfold. France pinned the game deep in Moroccan territory and the early warnings came fast. Bounou first pushed away a Mbappe shot, before Dayot Upamecano sent a dangerous header wide from the resulting corner.
Morocco tried to play out cleanly in the opening stages, but the space quickly vanished. The Atlas Lions dropped back and the Blues won the ball high up the pitch again and again. From one of those spells, Mbappe won a penalty in the 25th minute. After several minutes of waiting, the France captain stepped up against Bounou… and missed. His first penalty miss for France since 2021.
The miss could have sparked some doubt in the French ranks. It barely changed the script. Desire Doue kept driving at Morocco and forced Bounou into another save in the 35th minute. Just before the break, the Moroccan keeper was back at it, turning away a long-range effort from Lucas Digne.
At half-time, it was still 0-0. France had dominated, but Morocco were still hanging in there.
Mbappe misses, keeps coming and finally finds the top corner
The restart did not alter the balance. Morocco tried to push up a few yards, which helped them breathe a little more on the ball, but also left more room for France’s forwards.
It took until the hour mark for the door to open. Adrien Rabiot won the ball high, Desire Doue quickly found Mbappe and the captain gave Bounou no chance this time. A yard of space was all he needed to curl his finish into the net. It erased the penalty miss and took his tally to eight goals at this World Cup. Mbappe is now level with Lionel Messi at the top of the tournament scoring chart.
Morocco had to come out. Bad news against this France side. Five minutes later, the gaps appeared and the Blues made them pay. Mbappe slipped the ball to Ousmane Dembele, who finished the move to make it 2-0. In a matter of minutes, the quarter-final had completely changed. Morocco, who still felt capable of turning the game with one moment, suddenly had two goals to chase against a France side that was now simply waiting for the spaces.
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A third straight semifinal for the Blues
The closing stages might have been routine had Kylian Mbappe not gone off in the 77th minute. After a knock to the ankle, the captain left his teammates and now waits for news on the severity of the injury. His performance summed up a night of extremes. Mbappe missed a penalty, gave the ball away more than usual and lacked his sharpness at times. But when France needed him, he found the top corner and then laid on Dembele’s goal.
For Morocco, the story ends against France once again. Four years after the Qatar semifinal, the Atlas Lions are knocked out by the French in another World Cup, this time in the last eight.
Didier Deschamps and his players march on. Since 2018, France have not missed a World Cup semifinal. Three tournaments, three straight trips to the last four, and now another date on July 14 in Dallas. Spain or Belgium await.
Until then, one question will follow the Blues all the way to Texas: what condition will Kylian Mbappe’s ankle be in ?
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Photo credit: Odd ANDERSEN / AFP
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