Pablo Zabaleta
Ex-Man City and Argentina defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

It's a big game between two good teams.

France have really good players up front. They are a threat going forward. They have so much pace in wide areas and then [Olivier] Giroud inside the box.

Antoine Griezmann is also playing really well in between the lines, behind the striker.

Morocco, it is incredible how they keep that defensive shape - really compact and don't give much space in behind. They also have good players, who have been clinical.

It could be a tricky game for France but, of course, on paper it looks like France have a better team.

Image source, Getty Images

Morocco coach Walid Regragui knows what it feels like to win a trophy on Qatari soil and to receive a cup from Fifa president Gianni Infantino, and the big question this week is whether he can achieve both again on Sunday.

A suggestion that would have provoked ridicule before the World Cup began has become an ever-narrowing possibility after Regragui stunningly steered the Atlas Lions to the last four.

Having already won domestic and continental club titles this year, if the 47-year-old is to lead an African and Arab side to a first World Cup final, then he will have to knock out the country where he grew up and played nearly all his club career.

"I come from the Parisians suburbs," he has previously said.

"We are hungry guys there and love challenges. The more you tell us we can't make it, the more we want to try."

This is fortunate as Regragui will face defending champions France on Wednesday (19:00 GMT), just three months after his first game in charge of Morocco.

Read more here.

Away from the World Cup, some lovely news as former England striker Ellen White announces she is pregnant.

Perhaps we will be seeing White Jr following their mum and becoming a European champion in a couple of decades' time?

Morocco are one step from a sensational place in the World Cup final, with boss Walid Regragui embracing the "craziness" ahead of their semi-final meeting with defending champions France.

Their achievements in Qatar, becoming the first African team to reach this stage, have come as a surprise to many, especially after the coach who led the Atlas Lions to the tournament was sacked in August.

Arguably one of the biggest underachievers of North African football, with their sole continental title coming in 1976, Morocco's 2-0 win over Belgium in their second game in Group F was their first victory at the World Cup since 1998 - having failed to qualify for four straight tournaments immediately afterwards.

Fourteen of Morocco's 26-man squad were born outside the country - more than any other team at the tournament - with an eclectic mix of players from growing migrant communities across Europe helping them break new ground.

A crucial turning point for the team came just three months before the finals when Vahid Halilhodzic was sacked as coach and replaced by Regragui, who won the domestic league and African Champions League titles with Wydad Casablanca last season.

That change has helped soothe tensions in the squad, with Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech coming out of international retirement, while the improvement on the pitch has also been remarkable.

Read more here.

Moroccan football fans hoping to attend the World Cup semi-final later today have been facing cancelled flights and missing tickets.

The country’s national airline, Royal Air Maroc, has cancelled seven flights today, blaming a decision taken by the Qatari authorities.

There are also several reports of many excited fans who have made it to Qatar saying there’s no sign of thousands of free tickets for the match as promised by the Moroccan Football Federation.

World Cup organisers have announced the sad news that a security guard, John Njau Kibue, has died after suffering a serious fall at Lusail Stadium.

Kibue suffered the incident early on Saturday after the Argentina v Netherlands quarter-final.

He died on Tuesday after being in the intensive care unit for three days, the Qatar 2022 supreme committee for delivery and legacy announced via Twitter, external.

Chris Sutton
BBC Sport football expert

Morocco's plan, to defend deep and spring out on the break, seems simple but it is not easy to execute it as well as they have done against some very accomplished teams.

The only goal they have conceded in five games in Qatar is an own goal against Canada in the group stage. They have also faced Croatia, Belgium, Spain and Portugal at this World Cup and none of them have found a way through.

My worry is that injuries and fatigue will catch up with them here. Romain Saiss was carried off against Portugal, while there have been doubts over the fitness of fellow defender Nayef Aguerd and key midfielder Sofyan Amrabat.

Morocco break with great pace and purpose when they counter-attack and I am sure they will get opportunities the same way in this game.

I don't see it working to such full effect this time, though, because they might be too stretched to hold out.

Morocco will score, and they will rely on adrenaline as much as their quality, but I fear this will be a game too far for them.

I would love to be wrong, just because the African side have arguably been the best story of this World Cup, but this is probably where they say goodbye.

Image source, Getty Images

Anon: If France get to the final, does that mean there is going to be a new World Cup trophy as the winners [either France or Argentina] will have won it three times?

Good question - Brazil were awarded the previous Jules Rimet trophy after they won it for a third time in 1970. Since then, Germany have won the World Cup three times - as West Germany in 1974 and 1990 and a unified Germany in 2014. Argentina won the trophy in 1978 and 1986 and France were crowned world champions in 1998 and 2018. Fifa's regulations now state that the trophy, unlike its predecessor, cannot be won outright: the winners of the tournament receive a bronze replica.

Chris Sutton
BBC Sport football expert

The best way to describe France is they find a way and that is what I am expecting to happen here too, with Olivier Giroud having another big say in the outcome.

France don't play dazzling football but they are good to watch because they have got so many eye-catching players, and they seem to perform in fits and starts rather than sustain a high level for long periods.

That was how they got through their quarter-final - they were just more ruthless than England when they got their chances.

It is that quality in attack that should make the difference in this game as well. I am backing France to score first and see it through.

About 20,000 Morocco fans are expected to be at the Al Bayt Stadium for tonight's match.

QPR winger Ilias Chair said: "It's a great honour to play for these fans and make them proud.

"They are the best fans in the world. We are out there to give our all and hopefully at the end, be the best."

Manager Walid Regragui has said Morocco are "one of the four best teams in the world now", as they aim to create more history and reach a World Cup final.

They are the first African team to ever reach a World Cup semi-final.

"Why not reach the final of the World Cup? We will show great desire and try to pull off an upset," said Regragui.

"We've come to this competition to change mindsets within our continent."

Morocco have already beaten Belgium, Spain and Portugal on their way to the last four in Qatar.

"Before every match people thought we would get knocked out, but we're still here," added Regragui, who only took charge of the side in August. "We're getting closer to our dreams and we'll fight to get there.

"If we say the semi-final is enough, I don't agree. We aren't satisfied with the semi-final and being the first African team to do that. We want to go further.

"You might think that's crazy, but a bit of craziness is good.

"We're hungry. I don't know if it will be enough, but we want Africa to be on top of the world. I know we're not favourites but we're confident."

Fancy a job managing the world's second-ranked team?

Want to lead the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Thibaut Courtois at their next major tournament?

Well applications for one of the best jobs in football have opened - but you have to be a "serial winner" to apply.

After Roberto Martinez stepped down as Belgium boss following their disappointing World Cup campaign, the Red Devils are searching for their next head coach.

The Royal Belgian Football Association says it is looking for candidates "who know how to win".

Read more here.

France captain Hugo Lloris says "it was not easy to find the words" when he texted Tottenham team-mate Harry Kane after his side had knocked England out of the World Cup in Qatar.

Three Lions skipper Kane missed a penalty against goalkeeper Lloris during France's 2-1 win on Saturday.

They will reunite as team-mates on 26 December, when Spurs face Brentford in the Premier League.

"It's a difficult time for the England national team and Harry," said Lloris.

"We had a text after the game. It was not easy to find the words. He needed some time to rest.

"I think he can be proud of what he has done for the national team.

"In football history, many top players have missed penalties in their career - Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo - but I have no doubt Harry will keep his chin up and help Tottenham and the national team to shine."

Three months ago Antoine Griezmann was just making sub appearances for Atletico Madrid - and now he is a World Cup star in a new position.

As a midfielder for France, Griezmann has been crucial to their run to the semi-finals.

This was after a 2018 World Cup where he finished second top scorer and was named the third best player in the tournament.

Is he an underrated France legend? Read our piece here.

Simon 67: C'mon Morocco

Marc: Indisputable GOAT, the debate is over. An absolute joy to watch & we should all make the most of the next year or two before he retires! Most neutral fans will want Argentina to win it because of Messi! (As a Villa fan I am also supporting Emi Martinez).

Who will Argentina face in Sunday's showpiece?

We're going to turn our attention now to the second semi-final between holders France and Morocco which kicks-off at 19:00 GMT.

Anyone fancy the Atlas Lions to deliver another upset?

The images of huge crowds celebrating in Buenos Aires are one thing, but the true significance of Argentina's success at the Qatar World Cup is written large on the faces of the individuals gathering on those streets.

Men and women, young and old, even family pets are coming together to savour the atmosphere.

Don't be mistaken. Times are tough, external right now. The future is uncertain.

Football offers a brief escape from the worries of real life - and the people of Argentina are certainly embracing it.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Kloppite1957: If football was a science then Messi would be Einstein!

Alan Shearer
Former England striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, Reuters

Argentina are in the final because of Lionel Messi. He doesn't work as hard as he once did and he might not be as quick as he once was all those years ago.

But he has still got that magic, that ability to twist and turn and run with the ball and go past those defenders with ease.

He can make the very, very best look ridiculously average at times which of course they are not.

Argentina
2014 runners-up

Lionel Messi has now scored 11 goals at the World Cup, the outright most of any Argentina player in the competition’s history.

Messi made his 25th World Cup appearance on Tuesday against Croatia, equalling Germany’s Lothar Matthaus for the joint-most appearances in the competition’s history.

Messi has become the first player to both score and assist in four separate World Cup matches (since the 1966 edition), doing so versus Serbia in 2006 and versus Mexico, Netherlands and Croatia at this current edition (2022).