African interest at the World Cup came to a close on Thursday as Morocco were eliminated 2-0 by France, as had been the case in Qatar four years ago.
This time it was the quarterfinal, not semifinal, as Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele both netted in the second half in Boston.
Here are Morocco’s player ratings against France in the first of the World Cup quarterfinals:
Yassine Bounou (7): The veteran goalkeeper was in action early with key saves and stopped Mbappe’s 28th-minute spot kick. But he had no chance with the
Achraf Hakimi (5): Lost possession when tackled, leading to the French penalty, and squandered setpiece opportunities. It was not his best game, although overall he was most competent of all the African players at the World Cup.
Issa Diop (5): His split-second hesitation allowed Mbappe to get the shot in that put France into the lead.
Noussair Mazraoui (4): Moved to centre back with Chadi Riad injured and needlessly gave away the penalty that Mbappe squandered. Under relentless pressure from the French attackers.
Anass Salah Eddine (6): Took Mazraoui’s place at left back and made two good first-half tackles on Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele. But in the end, Morocco got swamped by the superior class of the French.
Ayyoub Bouaddi (5): Youngest player to start a World Cup quarterfinal since Pele in 1958. His mistake almost allowed Desire Doue to almost score just before halftime and was taken off in the 62nd minute.
Neil El Aynaoui (6): Put in a lot of work trying to link up the defence and attack while attempting to press and win the ball off the French in the midfield.
Chemsdine Talbi (5): A first start of the tournament for the winger, but he was unable to make any inroads down the left flank.
Azzedine Ounahi (5): Another key player in the Morocco midfield, but, as in the last game against Canada, playing higher up the pitch as support on the attack. There was never much opportunity to prove creative.
Bilal El Khannouss (5): Full of nervous, energetic running and kept an eye on Mbappe when he could but looked fatigued in the second half and was among the first players to be taken off.
Brahim Diaz (4): Had a counter-attack opportunity in the 12th minute but was muscled out before he could get to the edge of the French box. Replaced with 15 minutes to go to end a disappointing tournament.
Sofyan Amrabat (5): The defensive midfielder came on for Bouaddi but was out of position as Dembele got France’s second goal.
Sofiane Rahimi (6): Can never be faulted for his effort as he was brought in to try and get Morocco back into the game but had little opportunity.
Zakaria El Ouhadi, Gessime Yassine, and Mohamed Amine Sbai also came on as substitutes but did not play long enough for a rating.
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