Kylian Mbappe starred as France beat Morocco on Thursday afternoon to reach the 2026 World Cup semi-final.

France, who beat Morocco in the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup, had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock in the first half when Noussair Mazraoui felled Mbappe inside the box.

The Real Madrid star stepped up but, after being made to wait a few minutes while VAR checked the penalty call, a wait which didn’t go down well with Erling Haaland, his tame effort was saved by Yassine Bounou.

Mbappe made amends on the hour-mark when his stunning effort from just inside the box found the top corner. Ousmane Dembele doubled France’s lead shortly after and there were no further goals as Les Bleus won 2-0.

Kylian Mbappe Speaks Out Achraf Hakimi

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The match saw Mbappe come up against his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate and good friend, Hakimi. The two shared a warm embrace both before and after the match. The Moroccan captain, understandably, was emotional after the final whistle given his side’s exit.

In his post-match interview, Mbappe was asked whether he found it hard to see Hakimi sad after the match. His brutal response his being widely shared on social media. He responded, per L’Equipe:

“But it’s certain that when I see him again in the locker room, it will affect me because he’s a very close friend. But here, there are no feelings.”

Kylian Mbappe Gives Injury Update

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Mbappe had to be substituted late in the second half after suffering a knock to his ankle. He played down those injury fears after the match.

“I’m fine, I took a knock to my ankle but I’m okay,” he said. “JP (Mateta) was fitter than me to play the last fifteen minutes.

“We know there’s only one way to relax, and that’s to win. We’re in the semi-finals, we’re very happy, but there’s still a long way to go. We know what awaits us is even tougher than what we’ve already been through, but we’re ready to face anything. We’ll recover calmly and watch tomorrow’s (Friday’s) match to see who we’ll be playing.”

France will play the winner of Spain and Belgium in the last four of the competition. Their semi-final will take place at Dallas Stadium on Tuesday, July 14.

Liverpool are ready to make a move to sign Lille sensation Ayyoub Bouaddi this summer, and are ready to meet the conditions to get a deal done, according to Football Insider.

The Reds have had a quiet summer in the transfer market so far after appointing Andoni Iraola to replace Arne Slot, with Victor Munoz the sole arrival at this stage, while a number of top stars have departed.

The club are expecting a busy window, however, with plenty of change on the cards, and one player who they are keen to bring in is the Moroccan sensation who has lit up the World Cup.

Liverpool Ready to Accept Bouaddi Loan Back

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Bouaddi, who has been described as ‘elite’, has shone at the World Cup with the African side after choosing to represent them instead of France just prior to the tournament.

The teenager has been a regular with the Ligue 1 side for two seasons already, and is considered to be one of the top midfield prospects in Europe. Lille knows that he will leave eventually, but would prefer to keep him for at least one more season.

That has seen them demand that if any deal is sanctioned this summer, it comes with a loan-back clause inserted, meaning he would stay in France regardless of the move being completed.

Liverpool had previously been reluctant, since Lille are also demanding a fee close to £100m following the sales of Elliot Anderson and Sandro Tonali earlier in the window for nine-figure sums, but it has now emerged that they would be willing to accept the conditions to get the deal done ahead of their rivals.

Any deal is expected to go down to the wire because of his participation at this summer’s tournament, plus the level of interest, but Liverpool are firmly in the race.

Bouaddi a Long-Term Option

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While Bouaddi would absolutely be ready to step into the Liverpool team right now and make an instant impact, the lure to getting a deal done is the fact he is so young with such a high ceiling.

It’s evident that whoever signs him would be getting a long-term option for the midfield, and Liverpool know that with Curtis Jones likely to be leaving in the next 12 months, plus the likes of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai being linked with moves away, this would be the perfect remedy to that.

Bouaddi is a star in the making, and Liverpool are ready to make some major concessions to make him part of the squad at Anfield.

England could be far from full strength for their 2026 World Cup clash against Norway with two of their key players serious doubts about taking part.

The Three Lions, who are looking to end their 60-year trophy drought, have blown hot and cold in their run to the last eight.

Thomas Tuchel’s side opened up their campaign with an impressive 4-2 victory over Croatia, before coming back down to earth with a 0-0 draw against Ghana. They then beat Panama 2-0 to reach the knockout stages.

England survived a real scare in the last 32 as they scored two late goals to beat DR Congo 2-1, before producing a magnificent display to beat Mexico at the Azteca Stadium to reach the quarter-finals.

A tough tie against Erling Haaland’s Norway awaits, with the match taking place at Miami Stadium on Saturday, July 11. Confidence will be high in the England camp following their morale-boosting victory over Mexico.

However, England could be without two of their star players for the game.

Two Key England Players a Doubt For Norway Match

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Declan Rice has been integral for England this summer. He has started four of England’s five matches and produced some superb displays in those games.

It’s been well known that the Arsenal midfielder has been suffering from a hamstring injury and also a lower back problem, with Thomas Tuchel saying before the match against DR Congo that he was in ‘terrible pain.’

However, to make matters worse, it has now emerged that he has come down with a sickness bug. According to the BBC, this bug has forced Rice to miss training for the past two days. It is believed the bug has exacerbated his existing injuries.

England have taken measures to ensure that the sickness bug does not spread, with Rice isolating away from the rest of the squad.

Norway’s camp were also reportedly hit with a sickness bug ahead of the match against England, but their doctor has since played down those reports.

Marc Guehi is also a ‘serious doubt’, according to Sky Sports. The Manchester City defender was named on the bench for England’s opening match against Croatia but has since started and played the full game in each of their last four matches.

He is believed to have picked up a hamstring injury against Mexico, though, which forced him to miss training on Thursday. Time is running out for the 25-year-old to prove his fitness with the match now just a day away.

Sky add that Dan Burn is pushing to come into the England defence, should Guehi be unavailable. The Newcastle defender was terrific after coming on as a 75th minute substitute against Mexico. John Stones and Trevoh Chalobah are also options to start at centre-back alongside Ezri Konsa for Tuchel.

Reece James could also return for the game against Norway. BBC Sport reported earlier this week that the Chelsea defender was expected to return to training and be in contention.

Alan Shearer Expects Djed Spence To Start at Right-Back

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Djed Spence has been crticisied for some of his displays throughout the tournament, but he performed well after coming on as a late substitute against Mexico. Alan Shearer believes he should start at right-back over Reece James, even if the Chelsea captain is available.

He said, per the Mirror: “I don’t know the situation with Reece James’ hamstring, but I think it would be extremely harsh on Djed Spence if he didn’t start. I mean, he started left back, he started right back, he then went to left back when he brought him on the other evening and I thought he was outstanding when he came on the other day, as was Dan Burn, as was John Stones.

“But yeah, I mean, it’s amazing, isn’t it, we find ourselves before every single game discussing who’s going to be in the right back position. But my guess would be it would be Djed Spence at right back.”