France v Morocco: Keys to World Cup Semi-final

FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Quarter Final - Morocco v Portugal - Al Thumama Stadium, Doha, Qatar - December 10, 2022 Morocco's Achraf Dari and Morocco's Walid Cheddira celebrate after the match as Morocco progress to the semi finals REUTERS/Carl RecineRead less
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Quarter Final - Morocco v Portugal - Al Thumama Stadium, Doha, Qatar - December 10, 2022 Morocco's Achraf Dari and Morocco's Walid Cheddira celebrate after the match as Morocco progress to the semi finals REUTERS/Carl RecineRead less
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France v Morocco: Keys to World Cup Semi-final

FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Quarter Final - Morocco v Portugal - Al Thumama Stadium, Doha, Qatar - December 10, 2022 Morocco's Achraf Dari and Morocco's Walid Cheddira celebrate after the match as Morocco progress to the semi finals REUTERS/Carl RecineRead less
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Quarter Final - Morocco v Portugal - Al Thumama Stadium, Doha, Qatar - December 10, 2022 Morocco's Achraf Dari and Morocco's Walid Cheddira celebrate after the match as Morocco progress to the semi finals REUTERS/Carl RecineRead less

Morocco have conceded just one goal in the entire tournament -- an own goal in their 2-1 win over Canada in the group stage -- with Croatia, Belgium, Spain and Portugal all failing to breach a rock-solid back line.

But France boast multiple goal threats. Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud have scored nine goals between them and Ousmane Dembele and Antoine Griezmann will also ask plenty of questions, AFP said.

Morocco have a number of fitness concerns in their defense -- center-back Nayef Aguerd missed the Portugal game with a muscle injury and his regular partner, Romain Saiss, was substituted with a repeat of a hamstring injury.

Whoever Walid Regragui is able to send out will have to be fully switched on -- France showed against England that even if Mbappe is neutralized there are plenty of other sources of danger.

- France wary of counter-attacks -It is likely that France will enjoy plenty of possession in the Moroccan half but they will have to guard against swift counter-attacks.

Morocco's style is direct and while they tend to focus on the flanks, with Hakim Ziyech on the right and Sofiane Boufal on the left, they can also go long to striker Youssef En-Nesyri and then scamper forward in support.

France's full-backs Jules Kounde and Theo Hernandez can expect a busy night, while Morocco will look to take advantage of any slip-ups from center-half Dayot Upamecano, who had some shaky moments against England.

"We are well aware of their qualities, even if they don't often have possession," said Kounde. "They are very efficient with the ball, they try to combine quickly and find their wide players."

- Do Morocco have the legs? -Morocco spent a huge amount of energy in their wins against Spain and Portugal and with some players carrying injuries, Wednesday's game will be a real test of their durability and stamina.

The match against Spain went to penalties while they faced a frantic second half against Portugal.

France, in contrast, have been able to take care of their knockout games without any extra-time and should be much fresher.

Didier Deschamps' men will seek to exploit their fitness advantage by making Morocco work hard without the ball, switching play and forcing Regragui's team to chase the ball, especially in the early stages.

- Lions roared on -France have fewer injury concerns and more attacking weapons but Morocco will have the crowd behind them at the Al Bayt Stadium, urging them to pull off another upset.

The African side, known as the Atlas Lions, have been one of the best-supported teams in Qatar and they will benefit from huge backing on Wednesday as the first Arab team to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup.



Japan Qualify for BJK Cup Finals with Win Over Canada

Japan's Moyuka Uchijima levelled the tie when she breezed through the second match against Canadian Marina Stakusic, winning 6-3, 6-3 - AFP
Japan's Moyuka Uchijima levelled the tie when she breezed through the second match against Canadian Marina Stakusic, winning 6-3, 6-3 - AFP
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Japan Qualify for BJK Cup Finals with Win Over Canada

Japan's Moyuka Uchijima levelled the tie when she breezed through the second match against Canadian Marina Stakusic, winning 6-3, 6-3 - AFP
Japan's Moyuka Uchijima levelled the tie when she breezed through the second match against Canadian Marina Stakusic, winning 6-3, 6-3 - AFP

Japan became the seventh team to book their place at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals when they came from behind to beat Canada 2-1 in Tokyo on Sunday.

Victory in the doubles put them top of Group A and means they will be heading to Shenzhen in September to join hosts China, defending champions Italy and fellow qualifying group winners Ukraine, Spain, Great Britain and Kazakhstan.

The one remaining place will go to either Slovakia or USA, who meet in Bratislava later on Sunday, AFP reported.

Canada and Japan had both blanked Romania 3-0 in their opening matches, setting up the head-to-head finale which was played out in front of a noisy Tokyo crowd.

The Canadians made the better start with Victoria Mboko edging Ena Shibahara over three sets, 6-4, 6-7 (8/10), 7-5.

Moyuka Uchijima then levelled the tie when she breezed through the second match against Marina Stakusic, winning 6-3, 6-3.

That left everything on the doubles where Japan could call on the experienced Shuko Aoyama, now 37, and Eri Hozumi against Rebecca Marino and Kayla Cross.

The Japanese took the first set 6-3 but the Canadians hit back strongly to lead 5-1 in the second, at which point they wobbled, losing four games in a row.

They held their nerve to break again and take the set 7-5 but were immediately in trouble in the decider when Marino was broken.

As pressure mounted and errors crept into the Canadians' game, the Japanese pair turned the screw to see out a 6-2 final set which qualified them for the China showpiece.

The BJK Cup qualifiers featured six groups of three nations with the winners booking a ticket to the eight-team final tournament.