France beat Morocco to reach consecutive World Cup finals

Theo Hernandez's fifth-minute finish and Randal Kolo Muani's late goal carried France past Morocco 2-0 in the World Cup semifinals at Al Bayt Stadium in Qatar, sending Didier Deschamps' side into a final against Argentina. The result gave France a place in consecutive World Cup finals and kept alive a campaign that had already eliminated Australia, Poland and England.

France's run carried the weight of history. The 1998 champions and 2018 winners became the first team since Brazil in 1994 and 1998 to reach back-to-back finals, with Deschamps again at the centre of the achievement. He captained France to the title in 1998 and coached them to the title in 2018, giving the modern side a direct line to both of the country's previous peaks.

The semifinal also underlined the squad's depth and flexibility. Hernandez, a defender, opened the scoring inside five minutes, while Kolo Muani, introduced from the bench, added the second late in the match. France had already shown different ways to win in the knockout rounds, beating Poland in the round of 16 and England in the quarter-finals before handling Morocco's challenge in the last four.

Morocco's run had already broken barriers: Walid Regragui's side became the first African team to reach a World Cup semifinal and only the third nation from outside Europe and South America to do so. After the loss, Regragui said his players had given everything and that France's early goal had a huge impact on the match. France moved one step from becoming the first team to defend the World Cup since Brazil in 1962, a chance it later missed in the final against Argentina.