France did not so much beat Morocco as file a detailed incident report on them. Twenty-one shots to four, eight on target to one, and a first half that read thirteen shots to one like a printer that only knew one team's name. France pinned Morocco in their own third, worked the half-spaces, and turned Foxborough into a shooting drill. The 2-0 scoreline is the polite version of what actually happened on the grass at Gillette Stadium.

The comedy arrived early. After a VAR check that lasted more than three minutes, long enough to order food and regret it, France were handed a penalty, and Kylian Mbappe strolled up to convert the most anticipated spot kick of the night by rolling it tamely down the middle for Yassine Bounou to gather like a loose grocery bag. Sally forgives a lot, but not turning three minutes of suspense into a keeper's warm-up save. To his credit, Mbappe wrote his own apology in the 60th minute, the 20th World Cup goal of his career, hauling him within one of Lionel Messi's 21 and to the front of the Golden Boot race. Ousmane Dembele added the second in the 66th, his fifth of the tournament, and the contest was formally over.

Morocco, the side that had knocked the Netherlands out on penalties to get here, never truly tested the France goal: one shot on target says the magic ran dry at exactly the wrong time. They leave with heads high and a run to be proud of. France march on to a semifinal against Spain in Dallas, looking less like a team riding a hot streak and more like a machine that switches on precisely when the stakes demand it.