‘They controlled the game better than us’ — Mbappe on why France lost to Spain
France’s forward #10 Kylian Mbappe reacts to his team’s defeat at the end of the 2026 World Cup football tournament semi-final match between France and Spain at the Dallas Stadium in Arlington on July 14, 2026.
France captain Kylian Mbappe appeared to question Didier Deschamps’ tactical approach after Les Bleus were beaten 2-0 by Spain in the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday.
The defeat ended France’s hopes of reaching a third consecutive World Cup final as Spain outclassed the tournament favourites to book their place in Sunday’s showpiece.
Speaking after the match, Mbappe suggested France got their pressing strategy wrong against Spain’s dominant midfield, which was led by Rodri and Fabián Ruiz.
“We were three against two in midfield and against Spain, that’s hard,” Mbappe said. “Fabian and Rodri had plenty of time to play. There was a lack of communication on the press. I think we should have done man-to-man press and force them to run with us.”
The Real Madrid forward admitted France failed both tactically and technically, allowing Spain to dictate the tempo throughout the contest.
“We didn’t play the game we wanted, technically, tactically,” Mbappe said. “When you don’t do what you have to do in a World Cup semifinal, you don’t win. Spain respected their game plan and what the team usually does. They like to control the ball and the tempo. Our plan was to press them high so they could not install their rhythm.
“Because they are better than us at controlling a game. We didn’t manage to do it. We were too sloppy technically. We could not hurt them when we could have.”
Spain took control of the match after Mikel Oyarzabal converted a first-half penalty before Pedro Porro doubled the lead, with France struggling to create meaningful chances.
