Lamine Yamal Thinks France, Not Spain, Should Be Worried About World Cup Semifinals

Through six matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, France has looked unbeatable, with a perfect 6W-0D-0L record and a tournament-high 16 goals. Its next opponent is Spain in Tuesday's semifinal at Dallas Stadium, and Lamine Yamal isn't worried — at all. "They haven't beaten us since the Euros," Yamal said. "They can't be better than us." When asked about the form France has shown so far in the tournament compared to Spain, Yamal insisted that early results are not indicative of how the knockout rounds will unfold, pointing to another European powerhouse that went home early. "That doesn’t matter, the group stage means nothing, look at Germany," Yamal said. The upcoming fixture has drawn significant attention from fans and pundits alike, and the Spain winger noted that the squad has been anticipating this specific challenge since the tournament began. "We’ve been eager for it to arrive," Yamal said. "For me, we’re the two best teams in the World Cup, but we’re not afraid at all. I think if there’s any team that can confidently go up against France, it’s us." Regarding the tactics on the field, Yamal expects France to press Spain, but doubts they can maintain that intensity across the entire pitch for 90 minutes or more. "I’m expecting a team that will come after us but not for the entire match," Yamal said. "I don’t think there’s any team that can play us one-on-one all over the pitch. But we all know that France has players of tremendous quality both up top and at the back, and they’re very physical "We’ll play the way we know how, and we’ll try to keep possession of the ball."