Why Morocco can shock Kylian Mbappe and France in World Cup semi-final
Alex Keble shines his tactical spotlight on France's semi-final clash with Morocco, highlighting why the game could be decided down one flank.
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France’s caution might disrupt Morocco game-plan
- France v Morocco
- BBC One: Wednesday, 19:00 GMT
There is a growing consensus that this will be one game too far for Morocco, whose incredible defensive record (one goal conceded in five games) will be stretched to breaking point by the incredible form of Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann.
It is certainly a fascinating test of these two competing highlights of Qatar 2022; Mbappe is the top goalscorer with five and Griezmann tops the charts for key passes per 90 (3.4), while Morocco have conceded just 1.5 shots on target per game.
But there is a more subtle tactical reason why Morocco might finally come unstuck.
All of their major scalps – Spain, Belgium, and Portugal – are happy to dominate possession and territory, pushing high if encouraged to do so and pushing up on opposition goal kicks. This has allowed Morocco to play their transition-focused, Antonio Conte-like football of superb one-touch passing that evades a high opposition press and breaks into the spaces behind it.
France are less likely to fall into the trap. They will not be lured forward, which will force Morocco to pass the ball higher up the pitch and face a blockade of bodies, potentially entirely disrupting their rhythm and leaving top performers like Sofyan Amrobat and Sofian Boufal playing a slower style of football in less space.
It's all about one wing: France's left v Morocco's right
Then again, France are not as defensively secure as they used to be and Morocco’s emphasis on running at speed down the right flank through Achraf Hakimi and Hakim Ziyech happens to coincide with France’s weakest area.
Even before the England game we knew that Theo Hernandez was vulnerable, particularly with Mbappe never tracking back, but the way Bukayo Saka tore him to shreds will have filled Morocco with confidence.
When chances do arise to get into the final third, the combinations between Ziyech (drifting inside) and Hakimi (overlapping) ought to poke holes in the France defence, and indeed with Adrien Rabiot still looking a bit shaky in a two-man midfield we should not be too hasty in writing Morocco off.
Their confidence in possession could mean significant periods of pressure on the French goal. On the other hand, this threat may see the game become stretched as Mbappe takes advantage of Morocco’s attacking emphasis on this side.
Perhaps that means we will see less of Hakimi going forward, and indeed he stands as good a chance as anyone of stopping his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate.
Whatever happens on Wednesday, it seems guaranteed that the wing with Hernandez, Mbappe, Hakimi, and Ziyech will be where the action is.
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