France Advances to 2026 World Cup Semi-Finals After Beating Morocco
France reached the semi-finals of the 2026 World Cup after easing past Morocco 2-0 in Boston.
Kylian Mbappe saw his first-half penalty saved by Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, but he later scored with a wonderful finish to break the deadlock and reclaim the lead in the Golden Boot race.
Ousmane Dembele then burst through the centre before curling a low finish through Bounou’s hands and into the bottom corner to secure the victory.
Here is how the players rated.
France
Mike Maignan, 6: Could have played in slippers.
Jules Kounde, 6: Made some game runs down the right side to stretch the Moroccan defence.
William Saliba, 6: Typically unflustered.
Dayot Upamecano, 5: Might have done a bit better with his header early in the first half, and almost scored a wild own goal in the second.
Lucas Digne, 7: Hit the bar with a fizzing shot and offered a useful threat down the left.
Lucas Digne challenges for the ball with Brahim Diaz (Reuters)
Adrien Rabiot, 7: Comfortable keeping France ticking in midfield and was defensively key, making three interceptions.
Manu Kone, 6: Made some strong challenges to prevent Morocco from attacking on the break.
Ousmane Dembele, 8: Provided some smart passes and took his chance when it arrived in the second half, with some help from Bounou.
Michael Olise, 7: Produced one or two electric moments, including a clever piece of footwork to set Mbappe through on goal during the second half.
Desire Doue, 6: Played brightly and sharply on the ball but lacked end product. He could not convert his opportunity when driving to the edge of the box in the first half.
Kylian Mbappe, 7: Missed a penalty but made up for it with a beautiful finish, finding the inside of the post with power and precision to break the deadlock.
Kylian Mbappe fires home France’s first goal (Getty)
Substitutes: Zaire-Emery, 5; Mateta, 5; Barcola, 6; Gusto, 5.
Morocco
Yassine Bounou, 7: Made a good penalty save among several important stops, but made a mistake allowing Dembele’s shot to slide past him.
Achraf Hakimi, 6: Delivered a decent display, including a feisty battle with his former teammate Mbappe.
Noussair Mazraoui, 4: Gave away a penalty with a mistimed challenge after falling for Mbappe’s quick feet.
Issa Diop, 5: Received a booking in the second half for a rough bodycheck on Mbappe.
Anass Salah-Eddine, 5: Had a difficult assignment at full-back but did enough to keep Dembele relatively quiet.
Ayyoub Bouaddi, 5: The teenager failed to show his talent on this occasion.
Ayyoub Bouaddi is held off by Manu Kone (Getty)
Neil El Aynaoui, 6: Recorded three tackles and a block while covering plenty of ground.
Azzedine Ounahi, 7: Made a couple of tackles and attempted to get Morocco playing in midfield, though ultimately without much success.
Chemsdine Talbi, 4: Had few opportunities to get on the ball and conceded possession a few too many times.
Bilal El Khannouss, 5: Experienced a quiet game.
Brahim Diaz, 6: Played as brightly as ever, but Morocco missed the injured Ismael Saibari to act as a real focal point.
Substitutes: Rahimi, 5; Amrabat 5; El Ouahdi, 5; Yassine, 5; Sbai, 5.
