France and Morocco meet on Wednesday in the second semi-final of the World Cup in Qatar, a historic event in which the French, reigning champions, will be looking to return to the final four years later with Kylian Mbappé and Antoine Griezmann in the lead, while the ‘Lions of Atlas’ are aiming for their first ever final, with the title of the tournament’s revelation and the support of an entire continent.
It has been 24 years since a reigning champion last repeated in the final of the World Cup. It was in 1998, when Brazil, who lifted the trophy at the 1994 World Cup in the United States, reached the title match at the tournament held in France four years later. They came up against the French team – with Didier Deschamps in their ranks – and lost (0-3), with goals from Zinedine Zidane, Emmanuel Petit and Marcel Desailly.
But France, as reigning champions, will also have to deal with another ‘curse’ and revalidate the title won at Russia 2018, something that has not happened since Brazil in 1962. But the team coached by Deschamps has shown that it came to Qatar ‘in earnest’, playing with great determination and confidence in its model and idea to go up steps towards world glory.
Even when they do not play their best game, the French team wins. This was the case in the quarterfinals against England, one of the most outstanding duels of the tournament between two of the top favorites. The French won (1-2) thanks to goals from Aurelien Tchouameni in the first half and Olivier Giroud – four goals in the tournament – after Harry Kane’s equalizer from the penalty spot. The English striker could have equalized again from eleven yards in the final stretch, but missed, confirming that fortune was also on the French side.
As throughout the tournament, France will showcase their powerful attacking talent, led by a Kylian Mbappé who did not have his best afternoon against England but remains at the top of the scoring charts with five goals. His elegant yet sharp and powerful style will be a headache for Croatian full-back Josip Juranovic. The PSG star will have as his faithful squire an omnipresent Griezmann, timer and creator of the French game, in his most supportive and committed version with the group.
«We’re in the semi-finals, it’s already a good World Cup. There are no secrets; it takes a lot of things: the quality of the players, the collective strength, the state of mind and holding on a bit in matches to make them lean on our side. For me, the key word is to adapt,» Deschamps analyzed in the run-up to a match for which he has no absentees, and will be able to field his ‘eleven’ type, with up to four strikers and the support of Tchouameni and Adrien Rabiot.
MOROCCO WANTS TO «PUT AFRICA ON TOP OF THE WORLD».
Precisely, the only French blur of the current tournament was against an African team – the defeat (1-0) against Tunisia – as the most recent precedent. However, official meetings between France and Morocco are non-existent, the last precedent being a friendly in 2007 that ended 2-2 on French soil. Now, in Qatar, the Africans have the chance to make their World Cup dream come true and continue to break down doors, just one game away from playing their first World Cup final.
For the Moroccans, these semifinals are much more than just a soccer match. «We want to make history and put Africa at the top of the world. If we were to settle for a semi-final place, many people would agree, but I don’t,» said Morocco coach Walid Regragui, the architect of the productive, hard-working and solid model that has made them the surprise package of the tournament.
It worked against Spain and even more so against Portugal, whom they did manage to beat (1-0) in the quarter-finals, with a header from Youssef En-Nesyri. A goal that made Morocco the first African team in history to reach the semifinals of a World Cup. Their two first-choice center-backs, Nayef Aguerd and Romain Saïss, are their main doubts, just as Noussair Mazraoui does not seem to be available at left-back.
However, they have only conceded one goal – an own goal – in the entire tournament, so France’s threat up front will be a high-level test. Regragui will be able to count on his loyal ‘soldier’ Sofyan Amrabat as a pivot, capable of dominating large spaces with his physical power. The possible technical limitation will be made up for by the talented Azzedine Ounahi, in an ‘eleven’ that will also include the bullets Sofiane Boufal and Hakim Ziyech.
TECHNICAL DATA
–POSSIBLE LINEUPS:
FRANCE: Lloris; Koundé, Varane, Upamecano, Theo Hernandez; Tchouameni, Rabiot, Griezmann; Dembélé, Mbappé and Giroud.
MOROCCO: Bono; Hakimi, El Yamiq, Aboukhlal and Attiat-Allah; Amrabat, Ounahi, Amallah; Boufal, En-Nesyri and Ziyech.
–REFEREE: César Ramos (MEX).
–STADIUM: Al Bayt Stadium.
–TIME: 20:00
