France and Spain are meeting again at the business end of a major tournament. That’s becoming a habit. The two best teams in the world according to the FIFA rankings collide in Dallas for a World Cup semifinal that feels less like a surprise and more like fate.
But here’s the thing about these two sides. They’ve gotten here in totally different ways. France has been blowing doors off hinges. Ousmane Dembélé, the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, is playing like a man possessed. Kylian Mbappé is doing Kylian Mbappé things. Michael Olise has five assists. Between Dembélé and Mbappé alone, they’ve got 13 goals in this tournament. That’s terrifying for any defense.
Spain? They’ve conceded once. Once. But their attack hasn’t caught fire yet. Lamine Yamal, the 19-year-old wonderkid, has one goal and zero assists. That’s not bad luck. It’s just how this tournament has gone for them. They’re winning games on structure and grit, not firepower.
Luis de la Fuente isn’t panicking. The man who won the European Championship two years ago has a different vibe about him ahead of this game.
“I tell the players that we need to enjoy ourselves,” de la Fuente said. “We’re in a situation that might never happen again. That we be ourselves, and that we be wary of the opposition’s strengths. We absolutely must believe we want to go through. We’ll give it our all to reach the final.”
De la Fuente on France’s firepower and his own game plan
He’s done his homework on that French attack. That much is clear. When asked how you stop a front line that also includes Bradley Barcola, Désiré Doué and Rayan Cherki coming off the bench, de la Fuente had a pretty direct answer.
“We’ve analyzed them very, very thoroughly,” he said. “They have players of exceptional calibre, but so do we. The key is to impose our own characteristics and style, and to neutralize the opposition. That’s football. The more balanced side is usually closer to winning, although that’s no guarantee.”
Balance is the word. Spain has beaten France in their last two meetings. There was that 5-4 thriller in the Nations League semifinal where Spain went up 5-1 before France made it interesting late. And of course, the 2-1 win in the Euro 2024 semifinal. De la Fuente said they’ve studied both games closely.
“We learn a lot from those matches, as they will have done,” he said. “We will try to repeat the scenarios where situations were favorable to us and not the others.”
The favorites talk means nothing to this Spain side
Didier Deschamps called Spain the favorites in his own press conference. De la Fuente didn’t love that.
“Being told you are favorites or not means nothing,” de la Fuente said. “We are both great teams, like in the other semifinal (England v Argentina). I don’t understand why people say such things because whether we’re the favorites or not is completely irrelevant.”
He’s probably right. On paper, France looks unstoppable. But paper doesn’t win games. Spain has the recent history and the defensive record. France has the star power and the momentum. Something has to give.
De la Fuente also made a point to defend Yamal, who has been quieter than expected. “I’ve told him there is no need to worry. Let him enjoy himself. I’m sure Lamine’s great World Cup day is still to come. I hope it’s tomorrow and, if not, then in the final, if we can get there.”
Kickoff is at 8 p.m. UK time in Dallas. Spain’s second star on the shirt is there for the taking. But they have to get through this French machine first.
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