Is France's Kylian Mbappe human?

As the French national anthem came to an end, a smile came across Kylian Mbappe’s face, and he began to nod; he was ready to light up this World Cup once more.

Since appearing at the 2018 tournament in Russia, Mbappe has made football’s biggest show his playground.

Even when opposition teams have so much to work with when it comes to working out how to nullify Mbappe, he still finds a way to punish them in a flash.

He was knocking on the door from the fourth minute, a shot was saved, and Mbappe had his first sniff.

While Morocco struggled to get out of their own half, they were frustrating France, who were being stifled.

However, lightning will strike with this French team, and a fast counterattack started by Desire Doue, ended with Mbappe charging into the Morocco box before being fouled by Noussair Mazraoui.

That was in the 24th minute. Mbappe was on a roll, but a three-minute wait brought this footballing superstar to a halt.

As he waited for VAR to check that the right decision was made, Mbappe was left with his own thoughts, the weight of a nation on his shoulders, and a chance to continue making the World Cup his playground.

Once he was ready to take the penalty, something felt off. There was no swagger; had this magical football being suddenly become human in the loneliest part of any football match?

A stuttered run-up and a soft shot was saved by Morocco’s goalkeeper Bono, and Mbappe is indeed human.

He joined the likes of Harry Kane and Lionel Messi in the cast of forwards who have failed to convert from the spot.

For a period, the aftereffects of this curse hung over him. He struggled against a physical Morocco team, and at halftime, there could have been a sense of panic.

Instead, Mbappe had whatever potion manager Didier Dechamps was conjuring, and the magic had been restored for the second half in Boston.

He was playing with a target on his back, being kicked at every opportunity by the Moroccan defence, who were managing to keep him quiet.

But Mbappe only needs the slightest sight of a goal and the motivation to prove the doubters wrong to produce a moment of magic, and that came with France’s opener.

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After Doue’s quick pass, one touch was all that was needed for Mbappe as he curled in an effort just to the inside of the Moroccan right-hand post, and France were ahead in the 60th minute.

Mbappe celebrated with his arms outstretched before pointing at himself. The man knows he is someone who possesses talent from another world, and only the best can deliver this magic consistently.

For Morocco, they could not afford to let Mbappe strike twice, but they succumbed to his spells just six minutes later.

Occupying the Moroccan back four, his run towards goal opened up space for Ousmane Dembele to slot home a finish to put Les Bleus in cruise control and reach a third consecutive semi-final.

Mbappe’s magic show was brought to an end before the full-time whistle after a tough tackle, and while he was shown to have ice on his right foot whilst sitting on the bench, there was no distress.

Those set to make the trip to Dallas will be ready to see what new spells Mbappe has created in the hope of reaching the football promised land, but while it may have been brief, Mbappe did become a human in an arena where he is often not.

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