France became the first defending champions to reach consecutive finals since Brazil in 2002
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In the end, it was a triumph of French savoir-faire, their ability to manage such situations and get the job done – even when they were not at their best. Didier Deschamps can look back on a strong defensive performance, particularly from Ibrahima Konaté, that resulted in his team’s first clean sheet of the World Cup. When Kylian Mbappé burst into life inside the area late in the game, showing his twinkle toes and seeing a low shot deflect, there was Kolo Muani to tap home. Antoine Griezmann was brilliant in midfield once again, a case study in calm in the midst of chaos, all easy balance and technique, his appreciation of everything around him a joy, and France stay on track to retain their title. On Sunday, the final against Argentina promises to be a classic.
Within five minutes, France dashed Moroccan aspirations with a scramble in the penalty area that saw the ball fall to Hernandez, who met it at the back post and hammered a volley past Yassine Bounou. In the first half, Olivier Giroud hit the post and missed from close range after Aurelien Tchouameni’s barnstorming run through the middle. Morocco, on the other hand, were never overawed and had chances, with Azzedine Ounahi forcing two superb stops from French captain Hugo Lloris with speculative efforts, and curling set-pieces putting the French defence under strain.
The north Africans were hit hard by injuries to their key centre backs, with the gamble of starting Nayef Aguerd failing to pay off after he injured his hamstring in the warm-up and skipper Romain Saiss being forced to leave after 20 minutes. At the end of the first half, Jawad El Yamiq’s spectacular overhead kick nearly brought Morocco level, but Lloris only palmed the ball away from danger as France maintained their 1-0 advantage. Morocco came out strong after the interval, and Yahya Attiat-Allah missed a wonderful opportunity to equalise as Morocco dominated much of the first 10 minutes of the second half on France’s defensive end of the field.
After Kylian Mbappe’s half-shot dribbled toward the goal, Kolo Muani pounced to extend the lead with the third-fastest goal by a substitute in World Cup history, ensuring France’s return to the final. France defeated Argentina 4-3 in the 2018 World Cup in Russia, although Argentina holds the head-to-head record with six victories, three draws, and three losses in 12 meetings. France became the first defending champions to reach consecutive finals since Brazil in 2002, and they hope to become the first team in 60 years and only the third team in history to win the World Cup in consecutive tournaments.
