France breaks Morocco's dream again (2-0): Mbappé redeems himself and catches up to Messi

Football has scripts that repeat themselves, and Morocco versus France is one that hurts. Les Bleus won 2-0 in Boston and shattered the Atlases' World Cup dream for the second consecutive time: in Qatar it was the semis, now the quarters. And again with Mbappé as the executioner… though this time the match had everything, even redemption.

The match. Morocco proved again why they got this far: discipline, belief and a colossal Bounou. They had their moment of glory in the 27th minute, when Mbappé missed a penalty that could have changed everything. With the miss, France stalled and Regragui's men smelled blood… but this champion side has another gear: in the 60th, Mbappé himself silenced the doubters with the 1-0, and six minutes later Ousmane Dembélé wrapped it up with the 2-0. From potential tragic hero to the star of the show in half an hour.

Mbappé draws level with Messi… and limps off. With his goal, Kylian reaches 8 goals and ties with Leo Messi at the top of the Golden Boot race. The bad news for France: the captain left the pitch with ankle trouble before the end. In Dallas they're crossing their fingers, because without Mbappé this France team is a different beast.

Morocco, heads held high. The Atlases leave the World Cup just as they left Qatar: competing until the final whistle against a powerhouse and with the sense that this project hasn't peaked yet. Two straight World Cups in the quarter-finals (and those 2022 semis) are no fluke: they're proof that Morocco belongs at the top table.

What's next. France will play their third consecutive semifinal —something only a rare few achieve in history— on Tuesday, July 14th at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, against the winner of Spain-Belgium this Friday. Yes, you're thinking it: if La Roja do the business tomorrow, we're looking at a SPAIN-FRANCE semifinal. I'm getting goosebumps just writing it.

📊 Match stats: lineups, statistics and scoreline · 📰 Quarter-final preview · 🇪🇸 Spain's path

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