Morocco posed little attacking threat in the first half, spending much of it in a low block as they sought to withstand France’s relentless pressure. Kylian Mbappé won a penalty in the 28th minute after being fouled by Manchester United defender Noussair Mazraoui. Following a lengthy and controversial VAR check lasting more than three minutes, his spot-kick was comfortably saved by Yassine Bounou. The first half ended goalless, but the pattern of the match had already been established: Morocco failed to register a single shot on target. Mbappé made amends in the 60th minute with a superb curling effort that beat the defender and found the back of the net, his eighth goal of the tournament. Ousmane Dembélé doubled France’s lead six minutes later, and the score remained 2–0 until the final whistle. France are through to the World Cup semi-finals for the third tournament in a row.
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