NEW DELHI: Kylian Mbappe they contacted each other Lionel Messi in a special way FIFA World Cup after the club produced a stunning display in France’s 2-0 win over Morocco in the quarterfinals on Thursday. The French striker missed a first-half goal but returned with a goal and an assist as Les Bleus booked their place in the FIFA World Cup, where they will face either Spain or Belgium.With his performance, Mbappe achieved the feat four times in the last 60 years.There have only been four occasions in the last 60 years that a player has scored, assisted and missed a penalty in a World Cup match. Two of them have come in the last three days – Lionel Messi against Egypt and Kylian Mbappe against Morocco.The rare feat was first achieved by Ghana’s Asamoah Gyan against the Czech Republic at the 2006 World Cup. Karim Benzema became only the second player to do so when France won 5-2 against Switzerland in 2014.
Mbappe has recovered from the penalty miss
Mbappe looked set to give France the lead after Moroccan defender Noussair Mazraoui brought him down in the penalty area on 25 minutes.However, after a lengthy VAR review, the French star saw his penalty saved by goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, who made the correct decision. Miss did little to slow him down.Mbappe converted in the 60th minute, scoring his eighth goal of the 2026 World Cup and the 20th World Cup goal of his career. After six minutes, he set up Ousmane Dembele, whose finish doubled the lead of France.
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Mbappe’s recent performance continued his excellent World Cup record.It was the third time he scored and assisted in the same World Cup match. Only Lionel Messi, who has five such games, has led them more often in the past 60 years.The 27-year-old also became the first player since 1966 to register 10 or more goals in two separate World Cups. He scored 10 goals in 2022 and now has 11 in the 2026 edition.His 20 World Cup goals also took him one goal behind Messi in 21 years.The victory sent Les Bleus into the semifinals of the World Cup for the third time in a row (2018, 2022 and 2026). They became only the third country to achieve this feat after Germany and Brazil.It was also France’s eighth game in the World Cup semifinals, tied with Brazil for the second game in the tournament. Only Germany, with 12 semifinal appearances, has reached the last four more often.France will now look to continue their title defense when they meet either Spain or Belgium to reach the World Cup final.