2026 World Cup: Mbappe, Dembele strike as France outclass Morocco to seal semi-final spot
France captain Kylian Mbappe overcame a rare penalty mishap to inspire Les Bleus to a commanding 2-0 victory over Morocco on Thursday, booking their spot in the World Cup semi-finals. Two quick-fire goals in the space of six minutes proved decisive, ending the Atlas Lions’ resilient run.
With this victory, the tournament favorites have set up a highly anticipated last-four showdown against either Belgium or Spain.
At just 27 years old, Mbappe made history by becoming the youngest player to reach 20 World Cup appearances, matching the all-time French record held by legendary goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
Despite his milestone night, the superstar forward faced early frustration. In the 28th minute, France was awarded a penalty, but Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou calmly guessed right, smothering Mbappe’s low effort. It marked Mbappe’s first penalty miss for the national team since Euro 2020.
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However, the French captain made amends on the hour mark. Unfazed by the earlier miss, Mbappe curled a superb strike from just inside the box into the back of the net for his 20th career World Cup goal. The strike keeps him as the tournament’s joint top scorer with eight goals, level with Lionel Messi.
Before Morocco could recover from the opener, Ousmane Dembele doubled the lead six minutes later. Capitalizing on the space created by Mbappe’s decoy run, Dembele rifled home a low drive to net his fifth goal of the tournament and put the game well out of reach.
Blunt Morocco sorely miss Saibari
In a highly anticipated rematch of the 2022 World Cup semi-final, Morocco struggled to replicate their past heroics. The Atlas Lions sorely missed the presence of injured forward Ismael Saibari.
With Real Madrid’s Brahim Diaz isolated as a lone striker, Morocco failed to register a single shot on or off target in the entire first half. Their first shot on target did not arrive until the 84th minute, as a disciplined French defense secured their third consecutive knockout-stage clean sheet.
Reacting to the defeat, Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi conceded that the better team won.
“We are very disappointed; we wanted to advance. We have to recognise that France is a great team with excellent players. We lacked ideas and freshness, and we have to accept this defeat. Today France were stronger, but we are able to compete and progress and maybe eliminate them in four years’ time.”
Morocco will look to the future as they prepare to co-host the 2030 World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal.
“Three in a row” — Deschamps eyes history
France is now bidding to become only the third nation in football history to reach three consecutive World Cup finals.
Reflecting on the achievement, France head coach Didier Deschamps praised his side’s consistency, despite a late injury scare that forced him to substitute Mbappe following a knock to his ankle.
“That’s three (semi-finals) in a row — it’s good,” Deschamps said. “It seems logical and natural, but you still have to get the job done. It was tricky, the penalty… when it’s Kylian. He never has any doubts. But we’re exactly where we wanted to be. We’re taking another step forward today.”
Speaking after the match, a focused Mbappe echoed his manager’s sentiments, shifting immediate focus to the next challenge.
“A mission? I don’t know, but we can’t afford to let up,” Mbappe stated. “There’s still a long way to go, and what lies ahead is even tougher, but we’ll recover well.”
