France withstood an impressive Morocco display to set up a World Cup final with Argentina on Sunday that pits Kylian Mbappe against his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Lionel Messi.
Theo Hernandez, who came into the France side in the first game when his brother Lucas suffered a tournament-ending knee injury, scored the opening goal after just five minutes, acrobatically steering the ball past goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
Morocco had plenty of possession but failed to draw level and one of France’s substitutes, Randal Kolo Muani, made it 2-0 with 11 minutes of normal time left after excellent play by Mbappe.
Dominic Fifield, Stuart James and Mark Carey analyse the key talking points…
This France team are one step from greatness
And so, Qatar’s World Cup has the kind of final that will have Qatar Sports Investments, owners of Paris Saint-Germain since 2011, as well as a global audience, drooling.
Neymar may have gone with Brazil’s quarter-finals elimination, but Sunday’s showpiece will see a tete-a-tete between Messi and Mbappe, the other stellar elements of PSG’s forward line, at the Lusail Stadium. The pair are the tournament’s joint leading scorers, competing for the Golden Boot. More significantly, one is seeking this trophy to cap a glittering career. The other is attempting to secure a second World Cup before he turns 24.
In that context, it might be easy to forget that the meeting between these two countries in the first knockout round of the previous World Cup in 2018 produced seven goals and one of the greatest games this tournament has ever given us.
The French prevailed that day in Russia. They will feel they can do so again in Qatar, fired as they are by Antoine Griezmann’s creative majesty and the firepower they boast across their forward ranks. They have beaten England and Morocco in the last two rounds with Mbappe only firing in fits and starts.
Throw in Aurelien Tchouameni’s increasing authority in midfield and the canny and much-needed defensive know-how of Raphael Varane and Hugo Lloris — the Tottenham goalkeeper celebrated a first clean sheet for his country in 13 months in this one — and conviction is pepped.
One more success will see France become the first nation to retain the World Cup in 60 years.
