​A replay of the 2022 World Cup semi-final saw France reach the final four of this year’s tournament with a comfortable win over Morocco. Kylian Mbappé squandered a golden opportunity to put his team ahead in the 28th minute when his penalty was saved by Yassine Bounou. He would, however, eventually put France in front, curling the ball into the far corner from just outside the penalty area as the clock ticked to the hour mark. Les Bleus extended their lead six minutes later when Ousmane Dembélé found the bottom corner with a precise finish after weaving into space.
Didier Deschamps made one alteration to his French side following their contest with Paraguay, replacing Bradley Barcola with Desiré Doué on the left-hand side. Morocco, meanwhile, made a couple of changes of their own: Saibari was ruled out through injury and was replaced by Chemsdine Talbi, while Annas Salah-Eddine came in for Redouane Halhal.
Mbappé tested the Moroccan goalkeeper early on with a speculative long-range strike that forced a save and earned France a corner. Bounou was again called into action from the set-piece as he denied Dayot Upamecano’s header from the back post. Dembélé then attempted a looping header that drifted well wide of the target. France continued to dominate the early exchanges, and their pressure paid off when Mbappé sliced through the Moroccan defense, winning a penalty after being brought down by Noussair Mazraoui inside the box. After a three-minute VAR delay, which confirmed the on-field decision, Mbappé stepped up but was again denied by Bounou, who held on to the ball with composure. Dembélé looked to atone for his teammate’s miss after the hydration break but could only curl his effort wide. Doué then burst through the Moroccan defense and unleashed a shot that was well saved at the near post. Lucas Digne’s 30-yard drive appeared to dip and strike the crossbar before rebounding behind, signaling the end of a first half in which the African champions had offered sporadic resistance.
The AFCON champions earned their first corner of the match in the 51st minute, but they failed to fashion a real chance from it, disposing of the ball after playing the set-piece short. In response, Doué cut inside and fired another ambitious strike, which was comfortably saved by Bounou. France did not have to wait long for a second goal, though, as Mbappé again found the far corner from the top of the box in a flawlessly executed finish that arrived just as the breakthrough appeared imminent, compensating for his earlier penalty miss and settling the contest in France’s favor.
Morocco responded by introducing Sofiane Rahimi and Sofiane Amrabat, replacing Bilal El-Khannouss and Ayyoub Bouaddi as they sought a lifeline. Issa Diop was booked for a late challenge on Doué, the first yellow card of the match. Moments after the booking, Les Bleus doubled their advantage again when Dembélé found the bottom corner with a precise, daisy-cutting strike, reinforcing France’s lead and leaving the Moroccan side with a uphill battle to stage a comeback.
Morocco made a further double substitution in a bid to alter the trajectory of the match, replacing Brahim Díaz with Gessime Yassine and Zakaria El Ouahdi in an attempt to inject fresh momentum into their attack. The game continued with France maintaining control as they looked to seal their progress to the next stage, while Morocco searched for a way back into proceedings through renewed tempo and pressure in the later stages.