The France vs Spain World Cup semi-final ended in a 2-0 win for the Spaniards on Tuesday; Spain thus reached their first World Cup final since 2010, as Luis de la Fuente’s team will be looking to become European and World Champions.
The France vs Spain World Cup semi-final was touted as the clash between the two best teams in the tournament. However, France came up short in matching Spain on the day, and the latter played the former off the park.
France vs Spain World Cup Semi-Final: Spain’s Order Overcomes France’s Disjointed Genius
France had several geniuses in their team, but it was not enough against Spain’s order and discipline on the day. Spain kept playing short passes throughout the match, controlling the tempo.
On the other hand, in the France vs Spain game, the French struggled to maintain shape in their attack. Michael Olise, the influential French number 10, had to drop deep in an attempt to create moves and was often missing in the final third.
The French attackers switched positions too often for their own good. Kylian Mbappe played as the false nine, Ousmane Dembele kept veering towards the central positions, and Olise dropped deep frequently, as mentioned above.
Bradley Barcola faced tight marking by the combination of Pedro Porro, Rodri and Pau Cubarsi, as Spain blocked France’s attacks through the inside-left channel.
The lack of shape and order in France’s attack would have been fine against teams that did not dominate possession, as it would still give France enough time on the ball.
However, in the France vs Spain clash, France was not going to have enough time on it to start with, and they failed to make the possession count when they had it.
Dembele stayed on the right flank more often in the second half and also managed to take a few shots at the Spanish goal. However, those attempts were not enough, as Mbappe failed to keep his shots on target.
Rayan Cherki replaced Olise, but was not free from the tendency to drop deep either. On the other hand, Rodri stood like a rock to shield Cubarsi and Aymeric Laporte, who were both solid, and let’s not forget about Marc Cucurella, who also came up with a few vital interceptions.
Not to mention that Dani Olmo excelled with his one-touch passes again. Lamine Yamal earned his team a penalty thanks to a lazy challenge by Lucas Digne, and for the majority of the match, Spain managed to spread the ball around and keep it away from the French attack.
The inability of the French defensive midfielders to start counter-attacks inside their own half and link their defence with their attack stuck out like a sore thumb, forcing Olise to drop deep to start some form of attack.
Adrien Rabiot was taken off in the second half, but the passing of the French midfielders remained too nonchalant and often lacked purpose. The injury to William Saliba made France’s defence more vulnerable in the second half as well, as Spain just piled on the pressure.
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France vs Spain: Is This The End Of The Road For Didier Deschamps?
A defeat in the France vs Spain World Cup semi-final might signal the end of the road for Deschamps, who took his team to two World Cup finals and won the title once.
As the France vs Spain clash ended in defeat for the former, it might mean Deschamps will step down for someone like Zinedine Zidane.
This French team will remain one of the most talented ones not to win the World Cup.
However, as Spain pointed out, their order, discipline and precision were superior to France’s somewhat wayward genius as La Roja earned their place in the World Cup 2026 Final.
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