Mbappe Stars as France Beat Morocco to Reach World Cup Semi-finals

Kylian Mbappe recovered from an early penalty miss to inspire France to a convincing victory over Morocco, sending the two-time champions into the World Cup semi-finals with a commanding performance.

France created the breakthrough after Mbappe won a first-half penalty when he was brought down by Morocco defender Noussair Mazraoui. However, the Real Madrid forward failed to convert from the spot, with goalkeeper Yassine Bounou making a comfortable save from the poorly struck effort.

Despite the setback, France continued to dominate and were rewarded in the 60th minute. Mbappe produced a moment of quality, curling a superb strike from just inside the penalty area to give his side the lead and erase the disappointment of his earlier miss.

The French attack maintained its momentum, and only six minutes later Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele doubled the advantage. Allowed space to drive at the Morocco defence, Dembele fired a low shot that found the net despite Bounou getting a hand to the ball, putting France firmly in control.

Mbappe’s goal was his eighth of the tournament, drawing him level with Argentina captain Lionel Messi in the race for the World Cup’s top scorer. However, the French forward currently leads the chase for the Golden Boot thanks to having recorded more assists than his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate.

The latest strike also intensified the battle between Mbappe and Messi for the distinction of becoming the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer. The 27-year-old now has 20 World Cup goals, moving within one of Messi’s record tally of 21, achieved by the 39-year-old Argentine.

France’s victory continues an impressive tournament campaign as they seek another World Cup title. Having suffered a penalty shootout defeat to Argentina in the 2022 World Cup final, the French side now has another opportunity to challenge for football’s biggest prize.

The semi-final will see France face either Spain or Belgium in Dallas on Tuesday at 20:00 BST. With Mbappe rediscovering his scoring touch after an early setback and France showing both attacking quality and resilience, they head into the last four full of confidence as they continue their pursuit of World Cup glory.