Spain breaks the French rooster's ego and qualifies for the World Cup final
Spain qualified for the World Cup final for the second time in its history, with a 2-0 win over France in the semi-finals of the 2026 World Cup on Tuesday evening.
Mikel Oyarzabal (22 from the penalty spot) and Pedro Boro (58) scored the goals for Spain, who knocked out the Blues in three different tournaments in a row, after Euro 2024 (2-1) and the Euro 2025 final (5-4).
In the final scheduled for next Sunday evening, the Spaniards await the winner of the other semi-final clash between defending champions Argentina against England, on Wednesday evening.
The Spanish national team is seeking its second title after winning the 2010 World Cup in South Africa with a 1-0 win over the Netherlands in the final, and the Spaniards also rebounded from a 3-1 loss to France in the round of 16 of the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
The French team, the two-time World Cup winner and the runner-up of the 2022 World Cup, awaits the loser of Argentina's match against England to compete for the bronze medal at midnight next Saturday.
Spain deprived France of the semi-finals for the third year in a row in their quest for the title after the 1998 World Cup at home at the expense of Brazil and 2018 in Russia at the expense of Croatia, knowing that they lost the final of the last edition to Argentina.
Mbappe comments on loss
After the match, France captain Kylian Mbappe made no secret of his disappointment, admitting that the team's performance was below the expected level in terms of tactics, technique and overall performance, and it was the first time in the history of France's World Cup participation that the attack failed to score.
According to Mbappe's analysis, Spain's superiority in midfield was the direct reason for their defeat: in the face of the opposition midfield trio, Rodri, Dani Olmo and Fabian Ruiz, the French players found themselves in a disadvantaged "two vs. three" position, and as a result, France completely lost control of the game.
"We were hoping to disrupt Spain's high-pressure rhythm in their own half, but we failed.Spain followed their tactics and controlled the game much more effectively than us," he said.
First comment from the France coach
France's Didier Deschamps, the head coach of the French national team, has acknowledged the superiority of the Spanish national team and its deserved to qualify for the 2026 World Cup final.
Deschamps, in remarks quoted by the official website of the International Federation of Football Association (FIFA), explained that the French players are very disappointed after missing the opportunity to compete for the World Cup title, noting that everyone aspired to reach the final match.
The France coach confirmed that the Spanish team succeeded in imposing its control over the course of the match, and took advantage of its technical superiority to decide the qualification card, stressing that "La Roja" deserved to win.
Deschamps also refused to comment the loss on the refereeing decisions, stressing that the responsibility for the elimination lies with the French team, despite his reservations about some of the decisions that took place in the match.
He pointed out that France lacked offensive solutions, and was unable to threaten Spain's goal in the required way, in addition to the many mistakes in passing, which affected the team's performance and gave it an advantage to the opponent.
The French coach concluded his remarks by emphasizing that the big matches are decided in small details, explaining that any mistake in this role may be enough to end the dream of competing for the title, which happened against the Spanish national team.