The second semifinal of the FIFA 2022 World Cup took place at the Al-Bayt Stadium between the wonder team of the tournament, Morocco and the defending champions France, that saw the latter triumph over the valiant Morocco side to set up a clash with Argentina for the world title. Morocco has had a wonderful run in the tournament, having beaten major tournament favorites Belgium, Spain, and Portugal on their way to the semifinals.
Heading into the semifinals, Morocco’s performance, especially that of their goalkeeper Yassine Bounou posed considerable threat to the 2018 world champions, France. The match was an exciting encounter that saw France beat Morocco 2-0 following goals by Hernanzdez and Kolo Muani.
Just 5 minutes into the first half, Theo Hernandez connected with a bouncing ball from a tight angle to finish off a sweeping move started by Antoine Griezmann’s run down the right and a sublime cross in by Kylian Mbappe, giving France their opening goal and a much needed early lead. Morocco did seem to fight back towards the end of the first half, but their efforts were thwarted by a strong and organized French defense line up that didn’t allow any Moroccan shots at the goal. The first half ended with France leading 1-0.
The second half commenced and Morocco continued to maintain ball possession, trying to create several opportunities to score as Ziyech and Ounahi kept working in tandem throughout the first 15 minutes. The French defense line consisting of Griezmann, Konate, and Varane did well to keep their attempts at bay.
The 70th minute saw Thuram replacing one of the leading goal scorers of the tournament Giroud. He was a threat for the Moroccans, having already scored 4 goals in the tournament so far, and came close to getting his fifth tonight but missed an opportunity earlier in the first half.
When Morocco did almost seem to level up the game, 79 minutes into the match, Mbappe made an effort to net in the second goal for France as he fired one from close range, but it deflected off one of the players in the danger box and landed straight to Randal Kolo Muani who slammed it into the goal right in time to help France double the lead. A quick piece of brilliance by Muani who made the most of a scuffed effort on goal!
In the end, Kylian Mbappe’s men were just too good for the high-spirited and valiant Moroccan side as their referee ended the match, giving France a decisive victory and sending them through to their second straight world cup final where they will now have to defend their title against Argentina.
While France were the obvious favorites, heading into the match with the champion’s advantage, Morocco, led by Achraf Hakimi, have exceeded all expectations in this tournament. But as it was written in the stars, a quick goal by Theo Hernandez 5 minutes into the game and a follow up goal by Randal Kolo Muani in the 79th minute allowed the defending champions to end Morocco’s dream run at the most premium football tournament. It was a well-controlled 2-0 victory for France!
Now they will be up against Lionel Messi led Argentina in Sunday’s title match. So, stay tuned to 90agency for all the hot and happening updates from the final matches of the FIFA 2022 world cup!