Why France COLLAPSED Against Spain

France entered this World Cup semifinal with Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola. Spain left with a 2–0 victory and a place in the final. This wasn’t just one bad performance from France. Spain controlled the centre of the pitch, isolated Mbappé and prevented France’s attacking stars from playing together. Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring from the penalty spot before Pedro Porro finished a brilliant team move in the second half. But the real difference went far beyond the two goals. In this video, we break down: • How Spain created an advantage in midfield • Why Michael Olise struggled to influence the game • How Mbappé and Dembélé were isolated • The substitutions that failed to change the match • Why Didier Deschamps lost the tactical battle France had the bigger names. Spain had the better plan. Who deserves the most blame for France’s defeat — the players, the system or Deschamps? Let us know in the comments. Subscribe to LATERAL Media for football stories and tactical breakdowns from another angle. #France #Spain #WorldCup2026 #Football