France Cruise Into World Cup Semi-Finals As Mbappe Scores In 2-0 Win Over Morocco

France booked their place in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a composed 2-0 victory over Morocco on Thursday night, as Kylian Mbappe continued his remarkable scoring run before leaving the field late with an ankle concern.

The defending champions controlled much of the quarter-final in Foxborough, Massachusetts, with Mbappe opening the scoring before providing the assist for Ousmane Dembele's second-half strike.

Although France advanced comfortably, concern briefly spread through the French camp when Mbappe limped off in the closing stages after appearing to injure his ankle.

The France captain later played down fears over the injury.

"I have a minor ankle injury, but I'm completely fine," Mbappe said after the match.

France were handed an excellent opportunity to take an early lead after Morocco defender Noussair Mazraoui fouled Mbappe inside the penalty area.

However, Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou produced another outstanding World Cup moment, diving to save Mbappe's penalty and keeping the scores level.

The miss ended Mbappe's run of 15 consecutive successful penalties but did little to slow the tournament's joint-leading scorer.

Midway through the first half, Desire Doue collected a loose ball on the edge of the area before slipping it to Mbappe, who shifted the ball onto his right foot and curled a superb strike beyond Bounou into the top corner to make it 1-0.

The goal was Mbappe's eighth of the tournament, drawing him level with Argentina captain Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot.

Morocco struggled to create meaningful attacking opportunities against a disciplined French defence.

The Atlas Lions were without suspended and injured key players and failed to reproduce the attacking football that had carried them through earlier rounds.

France doubled their advantage in the second half when Mbappe accelerated down the left before squaring for Dembele, who calmly slotted a low finish into the bottom corner.

The goal effectively ended Morocco's hopes of another famous World Cup upset.

France finished the match with 19 shots compared to Morocco's five and generated significantly more attacking opportunities throughout the contest.

The only setback for Didier Deschamps side came late in the match when Mbappe went down holding his ankle.

The 27-year-old was substituted as a precaution, but quickly reassured supporters after full-time.

"I have a minor ankle injury, but I'm completely fine," he said.

France coach Didier Deschamps also appeared optimistic after the match, insisting the team remained focused on its quest for another World Cup title.

"We are exactly where we wanted to be," Deschamps said.

"It's a major hurdle cleared, but there is still work to do."

Despite the defeat, Morocco leave the tournament after another impressive World Cup campaign.

Coach Mohamed Ouahbi admitted France were the better side but expressed confidence in the future of Moroccan football.

"We wanted to win today and did everything we could," Ouahbi said.

"But we faced a very difficult opponent. It's disappointing, but we'll keep working because the future is bright."

Morocco's goalkeeper Bounou was again one of his team's standout performers, denying Mbappe from the penalty spot and producing several excellent saves to keep the score respectable.

France have now reached their eighth World Cup semi-final, equalling Brazil's tally, with only Germany having reached more.

The victory also gave Deschamps his 20th World Cup win as France coach, the most by any manager in the tournament's history.

Mbappe, meanwhile, continues to rewrite the record books.

The France captain has now scored eight goals and provided three assists at the 2026 World Cup, while becoming the first player to record at least 10 goal involvements in two different World Cup tournaments since such statistics began being tracked.

France will now face the winner of Spain and Belgium in the semi-finals as they continue their pursuit of a third FIFA World Cup title.