Deschamps: France-Spain semi will be 'spectacular'
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- Didier Deschamps predicted a "spectacular" semi-final when France face Spain in Dallas on Tuesday (20:00 BST kick-off), declaring "We are now at another level. We want to be in the final."
- France can become only the third country to reach three straight World Cup finals — joining West Germany (1982, 1986, 1990) and Brazil (1994, 1998, 2002) — if they defeat Spain.
- Spain have beaten France in their past two semi-final meetings, including the Euro 2024 last-four and a nine-goal Nations League thriller last year — a record Deschamps dismissed with "the past is in the past."
- Deschamps, who is stepping down after 14 years in charge, conceded Spain start as favourites after conceding just one goal in six games; counterpart Luis de la Fuente said the tag "doesn't mean anything."
- Kylian Mbappé has eight goals and three assists at the tournament — one more goal would move him above Argentina's Lionel Messi (also on eight) in the race for the Golden Boot.
- De la Fuente quoted Julius Caesar at his Dallas press conference — "you can't win without suffering" — and urged his players to "enjoy what we have today," singling out Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé and Michael Olise as France's threats.
Why it matters: France can join an elite club of two (West Germany, Brazil) by reaching a third consecutive World Cup final, but Spain's miserly defense — one goal conceded across six games — and a two-win head-to-head streak in recent semi-finals make them slight favorites even as Mbappé (eight goals) eyes Messi's Golden Boot lead.
