FIFA World Cup 2026 Semi-Final: Spain faced France, with the European champions bidding for a first World Cup final since 2010.
Spain 2-0 France
Spain blunted France’s attacking prowess to reach a second World Cup final in their history. The game in Dallas was about two teams who believe in two different attacking philosophies. The defending European champions believe in passing around your opponent and cutting through with clever movement, while the 2018 World Champions are known for their marauding style, as they don’t give opponents time to breathe.
Surprisingly, the semi-final began in somewhat subdued fashion. It seemed both teams were careful about not giving much away in the early exchanges, but the game burst into life after the 20th minute.
Lucas Digne tried to clear his lines in the box but ended up kicking Lamine Yamal high, resulting in a penalty. Mikel Oyarzabal confidently beat Mike Maignan from the spot to put his side in front. From then on, Spain controlled the game.
A delightful move was snuffed out by Dayot Upamecano at the last moment, with Fabian Ruiz going close. The second half saw La Roja grow further in the contest with Les Bleus looking disjointed. In the 58th minute, Spain went two up after Pedro Porro played an intricate one-two with Dani Olmo before slotting past Maignan in the 58th minute.
Three minutes later, Yamal had the French defence at sixes and sevens and curled in a finish, but the goal was ruled out for a marginal offside call. Much had been made of France’s attacking trio of Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, and Michael Olise, and rightfully so, but it took until the 81st minute for them to get a shot on target.
France had a late chance to make things uneasy for their opponents, but Unai Simon blocked Desire Doue’s effort after a mistake had let the attacker in. At the end, Spain went through without a hiccup as they look to add to a World Cup title to their current European crown.
Curva Analysis
It was a quiet end to Didier Deschamps’ reign as the French national team coach after 14 years in charge. During this time, Deschamps has re-established his country’s status as a footballing powerhouse, having won the 2018 World Cup in style. They followed it up with another World Cup final in Qatar in 2022, where they fell short on penalties.
In this tournament as well, they hit the ground running and appeared unstoppable until they ran into the Spanish wall. One can argue that it was a case of the team peaking too early, but they have played with the same verve in previous editions of the World Cup.
What can be pointed out is that in the semi-final defeat against La Roja, they looked like a team of individuals up against a well-drilled unit. The likes of Mbappe, Dembele, Olise, and others have stepped up when needed, but in Dallas they never got going. Still, this is a team of brilliant players, and whoever replaces Deschamps will have an abundance of talent at his disposal.
The team will be expected to end their wait for a European championship in 2028 and will be counted among the favourities in four years’ time for another shot at World Cup glory.
Spain, on the other hand, are showing all the hallmarks of a World Champion in waiting. Their tournament started with a surprising 0-0 draw against Cape Verde, but they have grown stronger with each passing game.
Luis de la Fuente has kept faith in his philosophy, and nobody knows this bunch of players better than him. He has seen success with the Under-19 and Under-21 teams with many of these stars, who also led Spain to Euro 2024 triumph.
But unlike their European Championship win two years ago, which was built on attacking flair, progress in this tournament has been achieved on the back of a solid defence. They have conceded just one goal in the tournament so far, a testament to how good they have been without the ball.
It hasn’t been an entire shift from their principles, as they are still capable of coming up with moments of sublime brilliance, as seen with Pedro Porro’s goal against France.
Despite questions over their slow build-up play, they have continued to control games and move forward with minimum trouble. With a winning mentality, a strong defensive unit, and an attacking threat, it will take a massive effort from either England or Argentina to stop Spain from winning a second World Cup.
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