Kylian Mbappe missed the chance to put France ahead as he had a penalty saved against Morocco in the FIFA World Cup 2026 quarterfinal in Boston on Thursday.
The incident happened just before the hydration break when Noussair Mazraoui brought Mbappe down in the box. Argentine referee Facundo Tello pointed to the spot right away, but then waited to confirm his decision after conversations with the Video Assistant Referee.
The VAR, Hernan Mastrangelo, who is also Argentine, had an extended chat with Tello and despite Mbappe taking his position for the penalty, he had to wait for three minutes and 11 seconds before the check was over.
The Real Madrid forward waited and then took the shot to hips right, which was saved by Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
The appointment of Tello and a complete Argentine set of officials for this match — the first time in FIFA World Cup 2026 — had stirred a controversy among fans, owing to the rivalry between Argentina and France, with the former winning the last edition, beating Les Blues in the final.
But France coach Didier Deschamps had cleared the air, reassuring that he remained unbothered with appointments.
“There is nothing I can do about refereeing appointments. I just try to have confidence in the officials,” Deschamps said. “I hope that Mr Tello and his assistants will be just as good as Mr Letexier and his assistants,” Deschamps said.
“There are always decisions that can lead to debate depending on which side you are on, but our opponents are Morocco. I can’t consider the referee to be an opponent.”
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Published on Jul 10, 2026