Sofyan Amrabat folded Kylian Mbappe in half with a hard-hitting tackle in the World Cup semi-final between France and Morocco.
Mbappe has torn apart a whole host of defences in the showpiece in Qatar, though he was kept relatively quiet by Kyle Walker in France's win over England in the quarter-finals.
The Paris Saint-Germain superstar went on an electric sprint down the left flank in the early stages of the second half against Morocco, leaving one defender sliding off the Al Bayt Stadium pitch.
Mbappe turned on the jets and had also left Amrabat in the dust. But the Fiorentina midfielder, who has been one of the top performers in the World Cup, refused to give up the race.
Advert
He sprinted back in and conjured up a firm but fair tackle on Mbappe, who was left in a heap on the turf.
Amrabat has earned plenty of admirers for his all-action displays in the middle of the park and epitomised everything Morocco are about.
The commentator had said, "Amrabat won't catch him" but he was very, very wrong. The work-rate to bust a gut and get back in is one thing, and then the tackle is just sublime.
Advert
His challenge was straight out of Sunday League, crunching Mbappe with a scissor-like motion. However, the referee felt the tackle was a clean one and waved for play to continue as Amrabat advanced with the ball.
Fans absolutely loved the tackle from Amrabat, who will surely be the subject of interest from clubs in the January window.
One said: "Brilliant tackle. Standard of Mbappe to roll around on the floor crying like a baby."
Advert
Another wrote: "Now that's a proper challenge."
A third commented: "That was a thing of beauty, what a tackle."
A fourth opined: "Tackle of the tournament."
A fifth added: "I’m going to keep watching this on repeat. Incredible work rate from Amrabat."
Advert
Mbappe got revenge on Amrabat with a deft nutmeg and also produced a slaloming run for France's second goal scored by Kolo Muani.
Les Bleus will now contest a second consecutive World Cup final against Argentina on Saturday.
Topics: Kylian Mbappe, France, Morocco
Josh Lawless