France have secured a third consecutive semi-final spot, seeing off a stubborn Morocco side 2-0 on Thursday. Les Bleus missed an early spot-kick but regrouped to wear down the Atlas Lions' defence and book their place in the final four.
France skipper Mbappé on Thursday night was quick to reassure fans about his fitness for the World Cup semi-finals, after he left the field in the quarter-final clash with Morocco late in the second half.
The 27-year-old was withdrawn in the 78th minute after appearing to favour his left leg following a heavy challenge, sparking concern among France supporters just days before Sunday's last-four tie.
But Mbappé took to social media within hours of the final whistle, posting a training video and insisting the substitution was precautionary rather than a sign of a serious problem.
Jean Philippe Mateta replaced the forward, who had given France the lead on the hour mark.
"I have a minor ankle injury, but I'm completely fine," Mbappé said. "Mateta was in a better position to play the remaining minutes of the match and was fitter at that moment. That's all that happened. I will be ready for the semi-final."
It was Mbappé's eighth goal of the 2026 World Cup, drawing him level with Argentina's Lionel Messi.
Morocco, who lost to France in the semi-final in Qatar in 2022, failed to muster a response.
France will meet the winner of Friday's game between Belgium and Spain in Los Angeles on Tuesday, 14 July.
'We need to take stock'
Morocco will leave the tournament with the kudos of becoming the first African side to reach the last eight at successive World Cups.
Ten squads from Africa, including debutantes Cape Verde, made it to this year's World Cup. And although nine reached the last 32, only Morocco advanced to the last eight.
But despite this achievement, Morocco boss Mohamed Ouahbi said there would be some soul-searching to be done.
"We cannot just say that we're happy and proud of what we've done," said the 49-year-old, who took over from Walid Regragui in March.
"We need to move forward, and in order to do so we have to be objective and to do some self-criticism. We need to take stock of the situation if we want to progress. It's essential."
Ouahbi's side was affected by the absence due to injury of star striker Ismael Saibari. They were under constant pressure in defence and appeared toothless up front.
Morocco would have been behind during the first-half had Mbappé not fluffed a penalty, after Noussair Mazraoui fouled him in the penalty area.
Following a three-minute delay for a check with the video assistant referees, Mbappé hit a weak shot which the Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou collected easily to his left. Minutes later Bounou got down well to save Désiré Doué's shot to his right.
But his early heroics went unrewarded.
Fifteen minutes after the pause, Mbappé picked up the ball at the edge of the penalty area and curled a short around defender Issa Diop and narrowly inside Bounou's left post.
Dembélé was equally clinical when he scored six minutes later.
'In our own bubble'
"We are exactly where we wanted to be," said France manager Didier Deschamps, who will step down after the tournament.
"I imagine there's a lot of excitement and passion in France," he added. "Here, we are in our own bubble, and I am even more so. That's what we're here for, and the players have a duty to do everything they can to go as far as possible. We've cleared a major hurdle."
France beat Croatia 4-2 to claim the crown in 2018 in Russia and lost to Argentina in the final in 2022 in Qatar.
If they were to overcome Spain or Belgium in the semis, they would become only the third national squad after Germany and Brazil to reach three consecutive World Cup finals..
"I want the fans to continue watching the games, giving us the strength," Mbappé added. "Even though many of them aren't in the stadium, the players feel their energy."
