France’s World Cup dream is dead, and the French press isn’t holding back on who they blame for it.
Spain knocked Les Bleus out in the semifinals on Tuesday, winning 2-0 on penalties that came from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro. The defending European champions controlled the game from start to finish, and France’s star-studded attack never found a way through. Luis de la Fuente’s team now waits for the winner of England and Argentina in Sunday’s final.
Back in France, the reaction was brutal. L’Equipe ran a front-page photo of Kylian Mbappe looking devastated with the headline “Fleeting star.” Le Parisien went with “Fallen from a height,” writing that Les Bleus never figured out how to break down Spain’s defense. Le Figaro called it the end of a dream, and Ouest France summed it up as “the end of the American dream,” with Mbappe hiding his face in his hands.
Three players got a 2 out of 10
L’Equipe’s player ratings were harsh, as usual, but three guys took the worst of it. Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise, Aston Villa’s Lucas Digne, and PSG’s Ousmane Dembele all got a 2 out of 10. Digne’s rating came after he kicked Lamine Yamal in a clumsy attempt to control the ball, giving away the penalty that opened the scoring.
Dembele, who won the Ballon d’Or last year, was called “a huge disappointment” by the paper. They wrote that whether he started on the right or moved central after 30 minutes, nothing worked. He did almost everything wrong and eventually just disappeared. Digne was slammed for an “uncontrolled header” and the foul that led to the penalty. Olise, who had a great tournament up to that point, was described as someone who had “risen so high in previous matches” but “fell very low this time.”
Mbappe got a 3 out of 10, with L’Equipe saying he looked isolated and tried to do everything himself without success.
Mbappe didn’t sugarcoat it
The captain wasn’t making excuses after the match. “There were too many technical errors,” Mbappe said. “We didn’t know how to hurt them when we needed to. It was up to us to shift the balance of power, and that’s where we failed.”
France came into the tournament as one of the favorites to win a third World Cup, but Spain’s organization and discipline made their attack look ordinary. Oyarzabal converted from the spot after Digne’s mistake, and Porro doubled the lead late in the second half. France never really looked like scoring.
The postgame coverage made one thing clear: this wasn’t just a loss. It was a collapse of expectations, and the French media isn’t letting anyone forget it.
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