Kylian Mbappé Demands Absolute Focus From France Ahead Of World Cup Semifinals

Kylian Mbappe spread his arms out wide and spun around after scoring his eighth goal of this year’s World Cup. He later gave the jubilant France fans dotted around the stadium a wave when he left the game because of an injury scare. Les Bleus, with a star striker who said he’s fine despite a right ankle issue, are headed back to the semifinals for the third straight World Cup tournament. Mbappé had a goal and an assist after missing a first-half penalty kick, Ousmane Dembele also scored and two-time champion France beat Morocco 2-0 Thursday in the quarterfinals. “There’s only one way to relax, and that’s by winning. Until we’ve done that, we don’t let up,” Mbappé said. “We’re in the semifinals and we’re very happy, but there’s still a long way to go.” Mbappé’s goal in the 60th minute was the 20th of his World Cup career and came in his 20th match at the tournament, moving him one behind Argentina captain Lionel Messi. Dembélé scored his fifth goal of the tournament in the 66th. Mbappé went down to the ground in the 76th minute, about 13 minutes after being hit hard by a Moroccan defender, and was taken off for a substitute a minute later. He was then shown sitting on the bench with an ice pack on his right ankle. After the match and with both shoes on, Mbappé ran and jumped in celebration with his teammates. “I took a knock to the ankle, but I’m fine,” Mbappé said. “At that point, JP (Jean-Philippe Mateta) was in better shape than I was to play the final minutes.” France will face either Spain or Belgium in the semifinals in Dallas on Tuesday. France beat Morocco by the same score in the semifinals of the 2022 tournament in Qatar when the Atlas Lions became the first African team to make it that far. France now remains on track to become only the third nation to play in the final of three consecutive World Cups. “It is a confirmation of how we’ve played so far,” said France coach Didier Deschamps, who added there is a reason for his team’s success in recent World Cups. “Having great players. Excellent players. My credit goes to the players. But maybe I do my job well,” he said. “The only truth is the one on the pitch.” Mbappé got his goal with a perfectly placed shot just inside the far post after Morocco failed to clear the ball. He received the ball just outside the area, took a couple steps forward and then sent his shot sailing into the net. He extended both arms and ran to the sideline to celebrate with his teammates. France’s second goal came after Mbappé took a pass and tapped it back for Dembélé. Mbappé kept running forward and took defenders with him, opening space for Dembélé’s shot. Dembélé said he wasn’t surprised with how Mbappé stepped up after his penalty miss in the first half. “He’s our captain and he has an incredible mentality,” Dembélé said. “We’re expecting even more goals from him.” France held a 21-4 advantage in shots on goal and 8-1 edge in shots on target for the game. “We are very disappointed. We wanted to go on,” Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi said. “When we had ball possession, our transitions were not great and we had to run a little more. Their players were in their comfort zone.” Mbappé also had the first shot on goal of the game, just missing wide right in the fourth minute. Then, in the 25th, he was running up the left side when he was chopped down in the box by Morocco defender Noussair Mazraoui. Referee Facundo Tello quickly pointed to the penalty spot. Mbappé lined up waiting for his attempt but was held up by a lengthy video review. He was finally cleared to shoot in the 28th minute, but after a hesitation, Mbappé’s shot toward the right corner was corralled by goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, who guessed the direction of the shot correctly. Deschamps said the long review also included a review for another foul. Mbappé made his only other penalty attempt at this year’s World Cup in France’s 1-0 victory over Paraguay in the round of 16. Still, France was by far the more active team offensively in the first half, holding a 13-1 advantage in shots on goal. Morocco’s best opportunity came just before the halftime whistle when Achraf Hakimi sent a free kick from just outside the box past the right post. France now has a chance to emulate Brazil and West Germany in reaching three straight World Cup finals. “We realize that what lies ahead is even tougher than what we’ve been through,” Mbappé said, “but we’re ready to face anything.” Reporting by the Associated Press.