France head coach Didier Deschamps has admitted his side was second best after their 2-0 defeat to Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup semi-final, saying La Roja deserved their place in the final.
Speaking after Tuesday’s loss in Arlington, Texas, the French manager said his players were deeply disappointed after seeing their hopes of winning a third World Cup title come to an end.
France entered the semi-final as one of the tournament’s most exciting teams, scoring 16 goals in six matches, but struggled to cope with Spain’s disciplined and dominant display.
“There is a lot of disappointment. The players are devastated because we had a lot of ambition, but we also have to admit that Spain were better than us technically,” Deschamps said.
The outgoing France coach acknowledged that Spain controlled the game from start to finish, adding that his team simply failed to perform at the level required.
Despite accepting responsibility for the defeat, Deschamps also questioned the performance of referee Ivan Barton from El Salvador, who awarded Spain an early penalty after Lucas Digne fouled Lamine Yamal inside the box.
Without directly blaming the official for the result, Deschamps suggested some of the referee’s decisions were questionable.
“I’ll ask a loaded question. Was the referee at the level required to officiate a World Cup semi-final? I’m not saying this because we lost, but there were quite a few situations,” he said.
Spain eventually secured a comfortable 2-0 victory, with Mikel Oyarzabal converting the penalty before Pedro Porro added a second goal to seal their place in the World Cup final.
France will now shift their focus to the third-place playoff, while Spain prepare to face the winner of the England vs Argentina semi-final in Sunday’s final.
Source: AFP.
