France survive Paraguay’s antics, but Morocco pose a different threat

PHILADELPHIA — Is it harder to score in 100-degree heat or against Paraguay? France had the unenviable task of needing to deal with both but survived to move on with a 1-0 victory, which will see them face Morocco in the World Cup quarterfinals in Boston in what will be another hard-fought battle. The two met in 2022 in the semifinals with France advancing 2-0, and this game could be even more competitive.

Facing Morocco, France can expect more of the same as what they got from Paraguay on Saturday, and while they may not have the temperature working against them in Boston, with Morocco’s talent level, the Atlas Lions won’t put 10 behind the ball in a similar way to Paraguay, but they will still be physical and more competent on the ball. France may have won on Saturday, but they needed help from the referee to do so as they ran out of answers, and frustration built. Falling into those same traps against Morocco and it will spell doom with a penalty kick aiding them in this round of 16 affair.

“I had never played a match like this, with so many hits, I mean, cheap shots, shoves in the back. So yes, it was complicated, but we won,” French midfielder Kouadio Kone said following the game.

The type of soccer and mastery of the dark arts is something that France expected, but when the referee let the two teams play, that’s something that they haven’t had happen as much during this World Cup, and it’s where this test went to a new level. Allowing games to trend toward the physical side to avoid stoppages has been evident, and while it has gone too far at times, teams have leaned into it, knowing that they have a long leash. France think they’ll be ready if they see it again.

“I think the referee could have given a few yellow cards; maybe that would have calmed them down a bit. And well, we knew they were going to try to throw us off our game, because the coach had prepared us two or three days beforehand,” Saliba said after the match. “Sometimes it’s clear we can get frustrated too, we’re not going to let them get away with it. But we stayed focused, and like I said, we finished with 11 men, even though we got a few yellow cards. But there you go, sometimes it’s battles, the match demanded that, and there you go, we fought a battle, we won the battle, 1-0, and we are qualified.”

Saliba is right that France won the battle, and we’re also reaching a point in the tournament where rest time for teams is beginning to shrink. Not needing to go to extra time will help, but the heat saw numerous players cramp up during the match, putting them into a scenario they hadn’t faced so far.

After having almost a week between matches during the group stage, that has now been shortened to only five days, which is also one of the reasons why Aurelien Tchouameni wasn’t available after recovering from a knock. Saliba admitted that the heat had an impact but that his side were able to keep their focus, which is why they’re now heading to the quarterfinals.

“It was extremely hot today, so it was easy to tire out quickly. And, you know, when you don’t score early on, the match can feel like a long, drawn-out affair,” Saliba said. But we stayed focused despite the heat.”

Paraguay had a few chances, but Julio Enciso ran out of steam and was subbed in the 61st minute, and Miguel Almiron also had to be substituted out of the game after seemingly picking up a hamstring injury. In Achraf Hakimi, Morocco will have a machine who can go 90, take his own chances and also create for others. As they showed against the Netherlands, Morocco can get physical when they need to, and they also were able to go against the run of play, facing Canada before taking control of that match. 

“They’re a very strong team. They’ve beaten major nations throughout the tournament, and most importantly, they haven’t lost a single game,” Saliba said. “So we know it won’t be easy. They’re a very good side; they defend well and have plenty of individual talent. First, we need to get some rest; we’re pretty wiped out right now, and then prepare well for the match.”

Morocco may be without their striker, Ismael Saibari, for that match as he reportedly suffered a hamstring injury, but this isn’t a team that is dependent on one person. Sufiane Rahimi came right in and scored off the bench for the Atlas Lions as they put three goals past Canada, becoming the first team to knock out a host nation in this tournament. Improving their place in every World Cup since ending their drought in 2018, this is a Morocco team that won’t have fear when facing danger and will go right at them.

Didier Deschamps’ side wobbled in their first true test of the tournament, but they can’t afford more of that. If thy do, their journey could come to an end when a team is able to do more than just punish them physically, but put the ball in the net and threaten their chances of winning it all.