Goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani helped France end Morocco's unbeaten run in the semi-final of the FIFA World Cup 2022 at the Al Bayt Stadium in Qatar and saw them earn their second consecutive World Cup Final spot against Lionel Messi's prolific Argentina. Hernandez became the first opposition player to score against Morocco at this World Cup when he broke the deadlock five minutes into the game before Kolo Muani came on late in the second half and scored with his first touch in the 79th minute to wrap it up.
Both sides made a couple of changes to their starting lineups. Eyebrows were raised as Dayot Upamecano was benched because of a cold and Adrien Rabiot was not even part of the squad. Ibrahima Konate and Youssouf Fofana were drafted into the starting eleven. For Morocco, Noussair Mazraoui and Achraf Dari came into the starting lineup and Selim Amallah and Attiyat Allah dropped to the bench.
It did not take long for the first goal as the Moroccan backline was breached after just five minutes. Antoine Griezmann received a through ball into the box before cutting it back for Kylian Mbappe. The PSG attacker was tightly marked and saw his initial effort blocked and the second effort deflected away from goal. Luckily for France, the deflection flew straight into the path of an unmarked Theo Hernandez who did well to smash an awkwardly bouncing ball into the back of the net from close range. The left-back's strike was the quickest goal in a World Cup semi-final after Vava's second minute goal for Brazil against France in the 1958 World Cup semi-final.
As the clock hit the 17th minute, Olivier Giroud pounced on a long ball and unleashed a venomous strike from an acute angle. The ball flew past the Moroccan shot-stopper and came off the upright as Les Bleus came tantalisingly close to doubling their advantage. Five minutes later, Morocco skipper Romain Saiss trotted off the field and was replaced by Selim Amallah. Saiss was struggling with a hamstring niggle ahead of this game.
The Atlas Lions did not sit back and enjoyed more ball possession than the defending champions in the first half. They came the closest in the 44th minute of the game. Hakim Ziyech whipped a promising ball into the box from a corner. The ball eventually came down to defender Jawad El Yamiq, who attempted an overhead kick that came off the post moments before the half-time whistle.
Morocco were struggling with the fitness of several players. Mazraoui was taken off at half-time and Attiyat Allah came on to replace him. In the second half, the Atlas Lions continued to keep the ball but failed to apply the final touch. Defenders Raphael Varane and Konate had to be alert to intercept and block a couple of promising crosses that had been played in by Achraf Hakimi and Sofiane Boufal targetting Youssef En-Nesyri and Azzedine Ounahi inside the box.
France had to wait till the 79th minute for their second goal that put the final nail in the coffin. 24-year-old Randal Kolo Muani stepped onto the pitch after replacing Ousmane Dembele in the 78th minute. Just 44 seconds later, the striker pounced on Mbappe's blocked shot and slotted the ball in from close range to seal the win for Les Bleus. Muani's strike was the second-fastest goal scored by a substitute at the World Cup after Richar Morales' strike 18 seconds after coming on for Uruguay against Senegal at the 2002 World Cup.
Morocco huffed and puffed till the final whistle as they did get a couple more chances to get a consolation goal in second-half stoppage-time but the French defence was on top and ended up securing their first clean sheet of the tournament ahead of the crucial final against Argentina. Paris Saint-Germain teammates Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi will be on opposite sides. For one, the voyage has just begun and for the other, this is the last dance. Time will tell who emerges victorious on the final day at the grandest stage.
First Published: Dec 15, 2022 3:50 AM IST
