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France head coach Didier Deschamps has rated Spain’s chances ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup semi-finals. Les Bleus will take on La Roja in the first semi-final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday, July 14 at the Dallas Stadium.<\/p>\n
Didier Deschamps has claimed that Spain are the clear favourites against his team, highlighting how many goals they are scoring. He also highlighted that Luis de la Fuente’s side have conceded just one goal so far. He said, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano<\/a>:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \nThanks for the submission!\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/template><\/p>\n \u201cSpain are clear favorites, without a doubt. I\u2019m not putting pressure on them. Scoring a lot, only one goal conceded\u2026 they\u2019re favorites\u201d.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n <\/template><\/p>\n France<\/a> are widely regarded as the favourites to clinch the 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a> and have been scintillating throughout the tournament. With their star-studded attack led by Kylian Mbappe<\/a>, Les Bleus have scored 16 goals in the tournament and have conceded just twice. Spain<\/a>, on the other hand, have scored 11 goals and have conceded just once. <\/p>\n France are somewhat on the back foot if we look at the all-time head-to-head results between the two European giants. The two neighbours have played each other 38 times till date with Les Bleus losing 18 times and winning 13 times. Luis de la Fuente got the better of Didier Deschamps in the last two meetings i.e. the 2024 UEFA European Championship semi-final and 2025 UEFA Nations League semifinal.<\/p>\n Pundit Paul Merson has backed Spain to overcome the mighty France in the first semi-final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He has claimed that La Roja will dominate possession against Les Bleus and predicted a 2-1 scoreline in favour of Luis de la Fuente’s side. Merson wrote on his Sportskeeda<\/a> column:<\/p>\n “You don’t want to miss this game. It is mouth-watering at the highest level! Both teams are playing well and they have top players all over the pitch. If I had to pick a winner, I would have to go with Spain here. I just don’t see where France get the ball! I think France’s forward line will have to drop a lot deeper to help the midfield and the defence in this game. Then obviously they have to cover longer distances to counter-attack as well.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n He added:<\/p>\n “If you are France, you want this game to be an end-to-end football match. If it gets to one of them gung-ho games like the one these two teams played in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals (Spain 5-4 France) last year, I don’t see how France don’t win this one.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Merson added:<\/p>\n “The fact that Spain have beaten France in their last two meetings will give confidence to Luis de la Fuente’s men. The big battle, for me, will be in midfield and I don’t think France can cope with Spain in that area of the pitch. If Aurelien Tchouameni is fit, he will start. But if it’s Adrien Rabiot and Manu Kone, they could struggle against Spain. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n “Prediction: <\/strong>France 1-2 Spain”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n France will look to get back to Spain following their defeats against La Roja in the semi-finals of the 2024 UEFA European Championship and 2025 UEFA Nations League. Les Bleus will make their third consecutive FIFA World Cup final if they can beat their neighbours on Tuesday, July 14.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Paul Merson predicts the winner of France vs Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup semi-final<\/h2>\n