France’s Run of Form
There was a lot of speculation about the French team not performing well in this World Cup before the tournament started. The more superstitious fans may have thought about the famous European World Cup winner's curse, where a European team that had won the World Cup was always knocked out in the group stage of the following World Cup. This curse came around in 2002 when France was knocked out, but it also struck Italy, Spain, and Germany. The more pragmatic fans will have thought that the injuries of both Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante will have affected their chances heavily. France was drawn into Group D, where they had to play against Australia, Denmark, and Tunisia. The team had an outstanding start, winning their first two games, against Australia and Denmark. France became the first team in the World Cup to secure a place in the knockout stage, breaking the curse. They lost their final game to Tunisia, but France had done enough to top the group.
In the round of 16, France had to play against Poland. It was a tough fixture, as Poland had a determined team and their goalkeeper, Wojciech Szczesny, was one of the outstanding players in the group stage. However, the French team asserted their dominance in the game and managed to beat Poland 3-1. In the quarter finals, France had to play against England. This fixture was one of the biggest matches in the World Cup, with both teams fancying their chances of winning. France pressed early and took the lead, but after that, they played more defensively. England pushed on but could not equalise in the first half. England was awarded a penalty in the second half, and their captain Harry Kane scored, putting the score level. France scored another goal, and despite mounting English pressure. England was awarded a second penalty in the 82nd minute, but Kane missed. England kept up their attack against France, but the French defence successfully held the score at 2-1.
Morocco’s Run of Form
Morocco is enjoying their best World Cup campaign ever, and the team has now found itself a huge international fanbase as the underdogs in the competition. They have managed to beat high profile teams against all the odds, and now are the first African and first Arab team to reach the World Cup semi-finals. With the hopes of many nations resting on their shoulders, the worst place the country can finish in is fourth, but if they hold on to win the next two games, they may win a historical World Cup, and inspire generations of young footballers in the future. Back to the tournament, Morocco was drawn into a group with Belgium, Canada, and Croatia. In their first game, Morocco had to play against Croatia. The game was not exciting for fans, as it ended 0-0, but both teams secured important group stage points. In the next game, Morocco played against the group favourites, Belgium. Despite Belgium having far more stars than the modest African team, they could not score during the match. In the final 20 minutes of the game, Morocco scored 2 goals, securing a 2-0 win. In their final game, Morocco played against Canada. Morocco took the lead in the 4th minute, and then they extended their lead to 2 in the 23rd minute. Morocco scored an own goal before the half finished, and then the second half did not bring any goals, so the game ended 2-1.
Morocco won Group F, and as such, they had to play against the runners up of Group E, which was Spain. This was seen as an easy fixture for Spain, as the team narrowly missed out on finishing first in their group, and by chance, they could play against a lower rankings team in their first knockout game. Despite being underdogs, Morocco successfully repelled the Spanish attack, and the match finished 0-0. Neither team could open the scoring in extra time, and so finally the game had to be determined by a penalty shootout. The Moroccan keeper, Bono, was fantastic, as he denied Spain 3 times from the penalty spot. Morocco scored their first two penalties but missed the third. Achraf Hakimi scored the Moroccan fourth penalty, sealing the win.
In the quarterfinals, Morocco had to play against Portugal. It looked to be the end of Morocco's World Cup fairy tale, but once again, their defence was extremely resilient. Morocco opened the scoring in the 42nd minute. Portugal had plenty of time to equalise and win the game, but the Moroccan defence held out, and Morocco won the game 1-0.
Which Players to Look Out For
France
Kylian Mbappe has been one of the stand out stars in the World Cup. He has scored 5 goals and is the top goal scorer in the competition so far. Olivier Giroud has also had a tournament to remember, as the striker netted 4 goals in the tournament, becoming the French all time top goal scorer in the process. Other players who have had great performances in the World Cup so far are Antoine Griezmann, who supplied the assists for both goals against England, Adrien Rabiot, Ousmane Dembele, and the French goalkeeper, Hugo Lloris.
Morocco
Hakim Ziyech is a key player for Morocco, always driving the attack forwards and providing both passes and shots. He has scored 1 and made 1 assist during Morocco’s campaign. The top goal scorer for the country so far is Youssef En-Nesyri, who has scored 2 goals. Achraf Hakimi, who plays as a right back, has also gone up to join the attack, and can contribute with his great speed. Their goalkeeper, Yassine Bounou, who is nicknamed Bono, has been another integral first team player.
France vs Morocco Betting Opportunities
There are plenty of ways you can bet on the France vs Morocco game. If you want to keep your bet simple, you can opt for betting on which team will qualify, the match result, total goals, double chance, and so on.
You can also go into more detail with your bets, picking which team will score the first goal, how many corners there will be, will a team win to nil, will both teams score during the game, and there are plenty of other similar picks.
Player bets are always fun, especially when it is the semi-finals of a World Cup and there are potential golden ball winners. Olivier Giroud and Kylian Mbappe are both teammates, but both have a great chance of winning the prestigious award. You can find bets on those two, and any other players in the match to score a goal. The odds on players to score are always long, so it is definitely worth checking out and taking advantage of.