As inspiring as Morocco has been in becoming the first African nation to reach the World Cup semifinals, the fans who have cheered them all the way have felt fundamental to an unforgettable journey.
The tone had been set even before kickoff as the now familiar deafening whistles greeted France's players as they emerged for their pre-match warm-up. It got even louder as the French national anthem was played, coming close to drowning out the stadium's loudspeaker system.The theme of Morocco's run has been that anything is possible. Not even the prospect of facing the defending champions and superstar forward Kylian Mbappe could quell the sense of anticipation.
With the defence hurting, France was able to take an early lead. Morocco had managed four shutouts through five games in Qatar but trailed early after Hernandez scored. Prior to that, the team's defense had conceded only an own-goal from Aguerd in the 2-1 win over Canada in the group stage. The Moroccans regrouped and had some chances to score, including Jawad El Yamiq's spectacular overhead kick off the post late in the first half.Morocco had already made history by joining the United States and South Korea as the only teams from outside soccer's two dominant continents to get this far. It is also the first Arab nation to play in the semifinals.
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