France, the 2018 champion and 2022 runner-up and the strongest candidate for the title of the current edition of the North America World Cup, meets a strong Morocco today in a replay of the semifinal of the last Qatar edition.

France imposed its control over its first four matches in this edition, thanks to its star-studded attack, but it had to exert great effort to achieve a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Paraguay from a penalty kick scored by its top scorer and runner-up top scorer of the current edition so far, Kylian Mbappé.

The Roosters have not suffered any defeat in their last 12 official matches (11 wins and one draw), and have achieved seven consecutive victories.

France players in the last training session before the anticipated match against Morocco (Reuters)

Coach Didier Deschamps enters history by leading his 25th match in the finals, equaling the record, but achieving the 20th victory is not guaranteed; as three of France's World Cup defeats this century (excluding penalty shootouts) came against African teams (3 out of 6).

As for the Moroccan national team, it showed great efficiency in the round of 16, scoring three goals without conceding against Canada, one of the host teams, from only five shots on target.

The Atlas Lions stand behind the only two unbeaten streaks for an African team over five matches in a single World Cup edition, and they will seek revenge after their loss to France in their sixth match in the 2022 edition.

This achievement would mean reaching the semifinals for only the second time for an African team, after their achievement four years ago. Also, the unbeaten run of ten matches since the Africa Cup of Nations final (7 wins and 3 draws) indicates Moroccans' ability to defy expectations. France have not lost in the six previous encounters between the two teams (4 wins and 2 draws), and achieved a 2-0 victory in the only official meeting, which was in the Qatar semifinal.

Amid Mbappé's brilliance with seven goals so far, the skillful winger Michael Olise has been notably influential, contributing to eight goals in his last six matches with the national team (3 goals and 5 assists).

His five assists all came in this edition of the World Cup, leaving him only three assists away from the tournament's all-time record!

On the other side, Moroccan Azzedine Ounahi shone by scoring a brace against Canada, ending a goal drought that lasted 11 matches in the finals.

Notably, all eight matches in which he scored internationally ended with a win for the Atlas Lions, and the last seven of those matches were with clean sheets. Doubts surround the physical fitness of both teams; as Frenchman Aurélien Tchouaméni and Moroccan Ismael Saibari are suffering from muscle problems, and the medical teams of both national teams are racing against time to treat them so they can be available.

Saibari, who recently moved to German Bayern Munich from Dutch PSV Eindhoven, is the top scorer of the Atlas Lions in the current edition with three goals, while Real Madrid midfielder Tchouaméni is a key pillar in Les Bleus' midfield.

English Sunderland winger and Moroccan Shamseddine Talbi said after the training session the day before yesterday: 'We feel good after recovering from the tough match against Canada, and we are now focusing on facing France and achieving the goal of reaching the semifinals.' The substitute, who assisted the equalizer against the Netherlands in the round of 32, added: 'Surely it's a match every child dreams of playing, but we must focus on ourselves and be at our best and make our country very proud of us.'

Meanwhile, PSV Eindhoven defender Anas Salah Eddine said: 'The French team has a good team, and so do we, and we have shown that so far in this tournament and we are working seriously in preparation for them.'

The match between France and Morocco will feature strong battles across all lines; the Roosters rely on the uprising of their brilliant attacking line, while the Atlas Lions will rely on a very technical midfield, supported by two world-class full-backs.

France's attack facing Morocco's wings

France cannot achieve its goal without a very high performance from its attacking quartet, which has received global praise for its impressive displays at the start of the tournament, but it was put under strict surveillance in the round of 16 by Paraguay's rough defense in the previous match and only decided by a penalty kick executed by captain Mbappé, who increased his tally to 7 goals in the tournament, and he will certainly be under the microscope against Morocco; as he does not intend to end his adventure quickly in his favorite tournament.

Also expected is the awakening of the other two attacking stars, Olise and Ousmane Dembélé, who were far from their levels and without solutions against Paraguay.

Olise, who suffered from unusual technical errors and loss of the ball, is required to regain his sharp vision that previously amazed football fans.

Mbappé looks to chase the top scorer title and lead France to a new victory (AFP) cut out

The Roosters also hope for flashes from Dembélé, the Ballon d'Or winner, whose tally has stopped at four goals since his hat-trick against Norway in the first round (4-1), in order to penetrate the Moroccan defense. But the Paris Saint-Germain striker will clash on his flank with Noussair Mazraoui, one of the pillars of the Atlas Lions, as the Manchester United defender is a world reference at left-back despite his ability to also play in the center.

Morocco's strength lies in having a flying defender on the right side, Achraf Hakimi, the Paris Saint-Germain star and two-time Champions League winner. Hakimi is not just a defender; he is a restless element, skilled in the role of full-back and winger, and if necessary, he plays in midfield as he does at his club under Spanish coach Luis Enrique.

The French will have to exploit the spaces behind him; which may push coach Deschamps to again give his confidence to the fast winger Bradley Barcola, who started in the last two matches and has scored two goals so far.

In addition to the Hakimi-Mazraoui duo, Morocco relies on a very technical midfield that may impose its control on the ball, as happened four years ago in the 2022 World Cup semifinal despite losing by two clean goals.

With the talent of French Lille's Ayyoub Bouaddi (18 years old), a defensive midfielder, and with players like Naïl El Aïnawi and Azzedine Ounahi capable of advancing and even scoring (two goals for Ounahi in the tournament), the French midfield will find itself facing a difficult test.

The Atlas Lions rely directly on the midfielders to shine in the North America World Cup, where Bouaddi plays a defensive role complementary to the strongly returning Azzedine Ounahi.

In Walid Regragui's 4-3-3 formation, without a clear striker, the midfielders form the main attacking threat, while Ibrahim Díaz is the most distinguished attacking playmaker thanks to four assists so far.

It is no coincidence that Morocco's top scorer in the tournament is Ismael Saibari (three goals), an attacking midfielder who was deployed as a false striker by his coach, before he suffered an injury in the last match against Canada.

As for Naïl El Aïnawi, who completes the trio, he is the link in the team and the player with the most passes and successful passes during the matches, and he is also the only one capable of compensating for the physical deficiency in the Moroccan midfield against the physical strength that the French will impose.