<p>France booked a spot in the 2022 World Cup Final after defeating Morocco, 2-0. The victory provides France a chance to be the first repeat World Cup champions since Brazil in 1958 and 1962. </p>



<p>As a result Morocco, goes down to the third-place game. Still, this is the best finish for an <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/morocco-represents-africa-at-2022-world-cup-20221210-WST-411906.html">African side at the World Cup</a>.</p>



<p>Throughout the tournament, Morocco relied on strong defensive play. It would steal a goal off a set piece or hold out for penalties, <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/hakimi-panenka-puts-morocco-in-the-quarter-finals-20221206-WST-411480.html">as it did against Spain</a>. For reference, no team scored on Morocco during its five games at the World Cup in 2022. The only concession was an own goal against Canada. Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, or Bono, has a legitimate chance to win the award for best goalkeeper. </p>



<p>The issue was the other team’s offense. France has an embarrassment of riches across the pitch. Therefore, it is fitting that two players not meant to start, or even appear, in the tournament grabbed both the goals. </p>



<h5>Unlikely French goalscorers</h5>



<p>All the chatter of this World Cup in the French camp was the play of Kylian Mbappé with five goals. Or, it centered around Olivier Giroud setting the French goalscoring record with four goals. </p>



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<p>It did not, however, focus on Theo Hernandez. The left back was a reserve to his brother, Lucas Hernandez. However, when Lucas picked up a serious injury against Australia in the first group stage game, Theo fit in naturally. </p>



<p>He attempted a wild high kick after a deflected shot that beat Bono. It was just his second goal with the national team. The other actually sent France to the UEFA Nations League Finals in 2021. It was 1-0 to France inside the first five minutes. </p>



<p>Then, Randall Kolo Muani scored the insurance goal in the 79th minute. The interesting fact about Kolo Muani is that Didier Deschamps did not originally select the player for the World Cup. Instead, he only joined the squad as a <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/news/christopher-nkunku-injury-world-cup-heavyweights-france-suffer-big-blow-on-eve-of-trip-to-qatar/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">replacement for Christopher Nkunku</a>. Remarkably, that was Kolo Muani’s first goal in the French kit. Not a bad time to get it.</p>



<h2>France reaches another World Cup Final</h2>



<p>Morocco had more of the ball. The Atlas Lions had 62% possession to France’s 38%. However, Hugo Lloris and the French defense always had an answer. The one time it did not, the post denied a goal. Jawad El Yamiq attempted an overhead kick that forced Lloris into a desperate dive. Then, the clank of the post denied an equalizer.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<div class="ck-twitter"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">BIKE KICK OFF THE POST<br><br>Morocco almost tied things up in an incredible fashion 😳 <a href="https://t.co/tdqSsyDs55">pic.twitter.com/tdqSsyDs55</a></p>— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) <a href="https://twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1603114113424818179?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2022</a></blockquote></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>France was the better team on the day, even if Morocco looked perhaps the more creative. An early injury exit to Romain Saiss, one of the defenders of the tournament, did no favors to protecting Moroccan security at the back. That being said, Morocco did temper the attempts of Kylian Mbappé. </p>



<p>Now, France has a date with Argentina in the World Cup Final. In many ways, it is a battle of eras. Kylian Mbappé, at just 23 years old, can have two World Cups to his name before he truly hits the prime of his career. Or, Lionel Messi can close out his international career with the one trophy he is missing. Sunday’s World Cup Final, fittingly, meets all the criteria for a fantastic intercontinental showdown.</p>



<p><em>PHOTO: IMAGO / Ulmer/Teamfoto</em></p>



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France ends Morocco run, reaches World Cup Final

France reached its second straight World Cup Final after defeating Morocco, 2-0, in the second semifinal of the 2022 World Cup.

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<p>Riots in Rabat. Celebrations in Casablanca. Tears of joy in Tangier. Morocco has advanced to the quarterfinals of the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/category/world-cup-2022/">World Cup</a> for <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1600204282644480001" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the first time</a> in its long-lived history.</p>



<p>It would not be possible without the Herculean heroics of one Yassine Bounou. The Sevilla stopper kept multiple shots out of the Moroccan net, but it was Spain’s wastefulness that doomed them to extra time. Spain nearly had a goal when Real striker Marco Asensio sent his shot wide one-on-one with Bounou. </p>



<p>But, it’s not to say Morocco was better than their European contemporaries. Athletic Club keeper <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1600151747258884098" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Unai Simon made a big save</a> in the 32nd minute, shutting down Noussair Mazraoui’s outside-the-box attempt.</p>



<p>It was a relatively quiet first 90 minutes as fatigue got the best of both sides. Expert tackles from both defense were the difference between life and death. A last-ditch lunge from Sofyan Amrabat blocked an excellent attempt from Nico Williams to send the match into extra time.</p>



<p>The extra 30 minutes seemed identical to the 90 minutes that just finished; both sides just could not finish. Morocco continued shredding the Spanish defense with what little possession they had. Angers midfielder Azzedine Ounahi beat several defenders to get to the box, where he laid it off to Bari striker Walid Cheddira. Unfortunately, <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1600176590410973187" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cheddira’s weak shot</a> met the grateful palms of Simon, who forced the ball out of danger.</p>



<p>Spain looked like the better team in extra time. Their best opportunity was Pablo Sarabia’s tight volley that clattered against the <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1600182286930087941" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">outside of the post</a> with the last kick of extra time. It was placed near-perfectly, and a few meters could have made Sarabia the hero instead of the eventual villain.</p>



<p>Of course, the high-energy penalty shootout was the highlight of the match.</p>



<h2>Morocco uses penalties to book spot in quarterfinals</h2>



<p>Sampdoria midfielder Abdelhamid Sabiri rolled the first penalty of the match to the bottom right corner, tricking Simon into the wrong direction. Paris star Pablo Sarabia hit the post for his first-ever penalty miss, giving Morocco a one-goal advantage. </p>



<p>Up stepped Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech. He slammed his penalty right down the middle, leaving Simon surprised and Spain nervous. Then came Carlos Soler. Bounou expertly punished Soler’s weak shot, guessing the right way.</p>



<p>Qatar SC defender Badr Banoune nearly jeapordized Morocco’s chances of running away with a penalty shootout, but Sergio Busquets’ halfhearted penalty attempt that Bounou easily beat away gave Morocco its best chance yet to advance to the quarterfinals.</p>



<p>Achraf Hakimi, the face behind the Moroccan team, the man who near singlehandedly drove the Atlas Lions to the World Cup; stepped up to the penalty  spot. He looked firm, composed, confident.</p>



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<div class="ck-youtube"><iframe loading="lazy" title="Morocco vs. Spain Highlights | 2022 FIFA World Cup | Round of 16" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vluo9tQcTDU?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>
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<p>He drives to the penalty spot, hardening his face, leaning back for more power. Simon dives to his left. </p>



<p>But, Hakimi smoothly, softly slots his shot into the center of the net to give Morocco its first knockout win ever. Grinning, he waddles like a penguin towards his ecstatic teammates. The world is Hakimi’s right now, and he knows it. </p>



<h5>A first for Morocco</h5>



<p>With Morocco’s win, they become the first African nation to advance to the World Cup since Ghana played Uruguay in 2010. A win against a fiery Portugal side would make them the first ever African or Arab nation to make it to the semifinals. Hakimi, manager Walid Regragui, and the Atlas Lions are up for the challenge.</p>



<p><em>PHOTO: IMAGO / Xinhua</em></p>



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<h3>Guide to World Cup 2022</h3>
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</div>
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<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup-tv-schedule/"><strong>TV Schedule:</strong></a> All the info on <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup-tv-schedule/">where and when to watch</a> every game
</div><div style="padding:10px;">
<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/2022/04/04/analysis-of-world-cup-groups/"><strong>The Groups:</strong></a> We <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/2022/04/04/analysis-of-world-cup-groups/">breakdown each group</a> and all the teams
</div><div style="padding:10px;">
<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup-jerseys-for-qatar-2022/"><strong>The Kits:</strong></a> Check out <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup-jerseys-for-qatar-2022/">what every team will be wearing</a> on the field this fall
</div><div style="padding:10px;">
<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/predictor/"><strong>Predictor:</strong></a> Play out every scenario with our <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/predictor/">World Cup Predictor</a>
</div><div style="padding:10px;">
<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/2022/04/05/world-cup-bracket-free-download/"><strong>World Cup Bracket:</strong></a> Map out the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/2022/04/05/world-cup-bracket-free-download/">entire tournament</a>, from the groups to the final
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Hakimi panenka puts Morocco in the quarterfinals

Morocco breezed past Spain in penalties after a scoreless 120 minutes. Hakimi's penalty gave Morocco its first-ever quarterfinals appearance.

Hakimi panenka puts Morocco in the quarterfinals - World Soccer Talk

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Hakimi panenka puts Morocco in the quarterfinals