From reactions after France's qualification to the Spain-Belgium clash and refereeing issues

Afghan Voice Agency (AVA) - Sports Service: With the first quarter-final match, the statements by head coaches and stars of various teams have added special charm to these competitions.

 

Deschamps: We are where we wanted to be / Mbappe reacted well

After his team's 2-0 victory over Morocco and advancement to the semi-finals, Didier Deschamps, head coach of the French national team, said in his evaluation of the game: "It was a good but complicated game. Missing a penalty and the opportunities we did not use made it difficult for us. "However, Kylian reacted well and scored." Referring to his third consecutive World Cup semi-final, he added: "We are where we wanted to be. Now we will recover well and see who our opponents are in the semi-finals."

 

Mbappe: Still a long way to go / I have no problem

"I am fine, I had a knock on my ankle during the game, but I have no problem. We are now in the semi-finals and we are very happy about that, but there is still a long way to go." He said of facing his close friend, Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi, "When I see Achraf again in the dressing room, it will be difficult to face him because we are human again and friends again, but not here, there is no emotion on the pitch."

 

Morocco coach: We won't let this defeat discourage us

“We have a young and ambitious team and we will continue to work hard in the future. We won't let this defeat discourage us,” said Mohamed Wehbe, the head coach of the Moroccan national team, after his team's elimination from the World Cup. He added about France's second goal: “We started the second half with a better approach. Then we conceded a goal on a half-and-half opportunity, in which some of our players thought the ball had fallen into Kylian Mbappe's hands and that's why they stopped. I don't know if it was a foul or not! I'm not a referee.”

 

Spain and Belgium; Ruthless attackers clash with an iron wall

In the continuation of the World Cup, tonight (Friday) at 22:30, the two national teams of Spain and Belgium will face each other at the Sofitel Los Angeles Stadium. Spain, who have kept a clean sheet for 450 minutes so far, will face a solid defence against Belgium, who have scored 14 goals and have one of the best attacking lines in the tournament, with the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Thibaut Courtois, the last of their golden generation.

The history of the 22 matches between the two teams shows that Spain have won 12 and Belgium five. Their most important meeting dates back to the 1986 World Cup, when Belgium won on penalties.