At the crossroads of dreams, the France of Kylian Mbappé, defending champion, and Morocco, carried by an entire continent and a tide of supporters, confront their destinies on Wednesday (8:00 p.m.) at the World Cup-2022, with the final at stake against the Argentina of Lionel Messi.
Loaded with symbols, this unprecedented duel in the World Cup can consecrate the regularity of the Blues, in search of a historic double and a third star, or the carelessness of the Atlas Lions, the first African team qualified for the last queen competition square.
The optics of a duel in the final on Sunday (4:00 p.m.) between Mbappé and Messi, sevenfold Ballon d’Or still scorer on Tuesday against Croatia (3-0) and over-motivated by the prospect of a first planetary trophy, looks like an apotheosis , after an atypical and decried tournament, organized for the first time at the end of the calendar year and in the Middle East.
But Morocco “wants to write history, to put Africa on top of the world”, proclaims the Franco-Moroccan coach of the Atlas Lions, Walid Regragui. “We may be crazy, but it’s good to be crazy”.
To Moroccan madness, France opposes a solid experience, an irreproachable state of mind, a panel of dashing thirty-somethings with Antoine Griezmann, Hugo Lloris, Olivier Giroud and Raphaël Varane, and a superstar, Kylian Mbappé.
The Paris SG striker is two wins away from becoming a football legend by becoming double world champion before his 24th birthday, like the Brazilian Pelé in 1962.
But the latter had hardly played during his second World Cup, diminished by an injury. Mbappé, on the contrary, flies over the competition, with five goals in five matches (as many as Messi in six matches), nine in total in two editions.
– “A lot of passion” –
Facing him on the lawn of the al-Bayt stadium, “Kyky” will find his best club friend, Achraf Hakimi, pillar of the Moroccan selection, native of Madrid and symbol of a multinational team, of which 14 of the 26 players were born out of the country.
But well beyond the Mbappé-Hakimi friendship, the France-Morocco opposition takes on a symbolic dimension for the hundreds of thousands of dual nationals living in France, 66 years after the end of the French protectorate in the country. of the Maghreb.
In the presence of Emmanuel Macron in al-Khor, north of Doha, and under high police vigilance in Paris – 10,000 police and gendarmes mobilized in France – the meeting “must remain a football match, even if there is a historic, even if there is a lot of passion”, insists Didier Deschamps, boss of the Blues.
Captain of the coronation of 1998, coach of that of 2018, the Basque coach is seeking a third world final with his usual serenity and ensures that a “positive dynamic has settled” in the group, between the experienced executives and the fifteen players discovering their first World Cup.
After recording a cascade of injuries, including that of Ballon d’Or Karim Benzema, the Habs have come a long way. But the success against England (2-1) in the quarter, the first big test of the tournament, gave them confidence: they now know that they are dangerous even when Mbappé is muzzled.
– Fewer holders –
The Parisian risks undergoing the same treatment on Wednesday against “the team that defended the best” in the tournament, according to Deschamps.
Morocco conceded only one goal, the one scored by defender Nayef Aguerd against his side against Canada (2-1). The Atlas Lions then signed two exploits, against Spain (0-0 aet, 3-0 tab) then Portugal (1-0), carried by their very numerous and noisy supporters, ready to overwhelm the stadium al-Bayt in the evening.
But the iron defense is on the kneecaps: Aguerd, captain Romain Saïss as well as the side Noussair Mazraoui are affected and uncertain.
For its part, France have known their typical team since the second group match, but the cold snap which weakens Dayot Upamecano and Adrien Rabiot, absent from training on Tuesday and very uncertain, adds a veil of uncertainty to this meeting. .
Ibrahima Konaté in defense and Youssouf Fofana in the middle are the most logical alternatives, but with fewer guarantees…
Hence the importance of approaching the meeting with “extreme concentration”, according to Lloris. “The further we advance in the competition, the closer we get to something strong and big”, concedes the captain, who knows the way: either a defeat and the match for third place on Saturday against Croatia (4:00 p.m.), or a success and the grand final on Sunday against Argentina (4:00 p.m.).