Kylian Mbappé Brushes Off Ankle Scare As France Reaches Third Straight World Cup Semifinal

Kylian Mbappé calmed fears over his fitness after limping off late in France’s 2-0 World Cup quarterfinal win over Morocco on Thursday in Foxborough, Massachusetts, insisting the injury is nothing serious ahead of Tuesday’s semifinal.

The moment came in the 77th minute, with France already up two goals, when Mbappé went to ground clutching his leg and asked to come off, making way for Jean-Philippe Mateta. Cameras later caught him on the bench with ice wrapped around his right ankle, prompting a wave of concern among fans. He addressed it directly afterward, telling reporters he’d taken a knock to the ankle but was fine, adding that Mateta was in better shape to handle the final stretch.

Speaking separately to French broadcaster M6, he echoed the same message, saying he was doing well despite the knock. Coach Didier Deschamps confirmed his captain had some ankle pain but downplayed the severity, calling it nothing serious.

The injury appeared to stem from a second-half sequence in which Mbappé spun away from Morocco defender Issa Diop, a former France youth teammate, who caught him with a hard challenge. It capped an eventful night for Mbappé, who missed a first-half penalty saved by goalkeeper Yassine Bounou before scoring in the 60th minute to draw level with Lionel Messi atop the tournament’s scoring chart with eight goals each. His assist on Ousmane Dembélé‘s goal six minutes later gave France a cushion.

Mbappé has now posted double-digit goal involvements in consecutive World Cups, a feat no other player has managed since 1966, and his 11 combined goals and assists this tournament are the most by any player since Gerd Müller in 1970.

The result sends France to a third straight World Cup semifinal, where they’ll face the winner of Friday’s Belgium-Spain quarterfinal on Tuesday in Arlington, Texas. Mbappé, who described a lingering friendship with Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi, his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate, said there was no sentiment on the pitch during the match itself but expected the emotion of facing him to hit once they reunited in the locker room.

Mbappé was seen celebrating with teammates and fans on the field minutes after the final whistle, showing no visible signs of discomfort.

Last summer, Mbappé was in the news when he sued his club, PSG, for “moral harassment.”