The World Cup quarterfinal between France and Morocco in Boston on Thursday isn’t just a rematch of the 2022 semifinal in Qatar. It’s a collision between a team chasing history and a program that refuses to go away.
France arrived in North America as one of the favorites, and they’ve played like it. They steamrolled the toughest group in the tournament, then showed a grittier side against Paraguay — a team that had already knocked out Germany. Kylian Mbappé’s penalty got them through, but the French also proved they can win ugly. That matters in knockout soccer.
Mbappé now sits at 19 World Cup goals, one behind Lionel Messi for the all-time record. The crazy part? He’s done it in 19 games. Messi needed 31. If Mbappé scores Thursday, he ties the record with a game — maybe two — still to play.
Morocco’s story is tougher to summarize. They’ve been the best team in Africa for years now, and they’re knocking on the door of a second straight World Cup semifinal. Manager Mohamed Ouhabi has built a squad that doesn’t fold under pressure. They went unbeaten in group play against Brazil, Scotland, and Haiti. The draw with Brazil could have been a win — Ismael Saibari scored early, and they held Vinicius Junior to one moment of magic.
Then came the round of 32 against the Netherlands. Cody Gakpo scored early. Issa Diop equalized late. Penalties went Morocco’s way after misses from Justin Kluivert, Crycensio Summerville, and Quinten Timber. That kind of win changes how a team sees itself.
Morocco followed it up by comfortably beating one of the host nations, Canada. That set up the rematch everyone wanted.
The injury situations are completely different
France’s only real question mark is Aurelien Tchouaméni. The Real Madrid midfielder has missed two games with a thigh injury. His fill-in, Kouadio Koné, hasn’t looked great, and Adrien Rabiot has been left isolated at times. Deschamps isn’t saying whether Tchouaméni will play. That’s by design.
Morocco’s problem is bigger. Saibari, their leading scorer in the tournament, pulled up with a hamstring injury just 30 minutes into the Canada game. If he can’t go, Soufiane Rahimi will likely start in his place. Rahimi is fine. He’s not Saibari.
The good news for Morocco? Chiadi Riad is back from injury and should slot into the back line alongside Redouane Halhal. That gives them their strongest defensive pairing.
These two teams have met twice before. France won 2-0 in the 2022 World Cup semifinal. They drew 2-2 in a friendly back in 2007. That’s it. Morocco hasn’t beaten France in a competitive match — ever.
Thursday changes that, or it doesn’t. Either way, Boston is about to get loud. Kickoff is at 4 p.m. Eastern.
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