Morocco – France: Les Bleus tame the Atlas Lions

MOROCCO – FRANCE: THE BLUES TAME THE LIONS OF THE ATLAS

Morocco – France: Les Bleus tame the Atlas Lions in this semi-final. They will try to bring back a third star next Sunday night. Didier Deschamps’ men beat Achraf Hakimi’s Morocco by 2-0 and will go on to challenge Argentina in the World Cup final. The heroes of the evening are Lucas Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani, who will not have lacked effectiveness against a Moroccan team willing and determined.

A THUNDEROUS START TO THE GAME

And it didn’t take long for the Blues to score the first goal of the game. After an initial sequence of Moroccan possession, the ball came back to the French team in the last 20 meters. After a succession of blocked shots, the ball came back to Hernandez, who was off-centre on the left side of the opposition’s box. The French left-back does not ask himself any questions. He lifts his left leg up to man height and places a beautiful unstoppable shot for Bounou. The score is 1-0 after 5 minutes of play.

However, there were concerns about the defense and midfield of the French team. Finally, the absences of Dayot Upamecano and Adrien Rabiot were quickly covered by the magnificent performance of Konaté. Indeed, the Liverpool defender has been very valuable in repelling the many Moroccan attempts in the first half. The latter will have maintained a high percentage of possession (60%) despite the physical problems of several important players such as Romain Saïss, but without concretizing, since Hugo Lloris will have diverted not less than 3 attempts on target.

A DIFFICULT SECOND HALF FOR THE BLUES

Paradoxically, we saw the Blues suffer at the beginning of the second half. Indeed, Didier Deschamps’ men seem to be a bit stifled by the Moroccans who are pressing and determined to get back to the score. The French defense had a few scares, but once again, Konate and Koundé relieved their team by repelling the opposing attacks. It was not until the 79th minute that the Blues took the lead thanks to Randal Kolo Muani. The young Frenchman, who has just entered the game, is well placed at the Moroccan 6 meters to push Mbappé’s shot into the goal, which is countered. Les Bleus take the lead (2-0, 79th) and Morocco will not recover.

It is the fourth time in their history that the French will play a World Cup final, next Sunday, December 18 against Argentina of Lionel Messi. The Moroccans deserve immense respect for the mentality and the exemplary course achieved during this World Cup. Hoalid Regragui and his players write a new page in the history of world soccer and Moroccan soccer, which is not soon to be forgotten…