Consider this a spectacular telling-off for anyone tempted to cast Spain as underdogs. How they enjoyed dishing the lesson out here, booking a showdown in New Jersey on Sunday and reducing France to passengers. Didier Deschamps’ team had been billed as champions elect but their feted attack was never in the game. For Kylian Mbappé it will be another four-year wait to reconquer the globe; he was an isolated figure, snuffed out by opponents who completely dictated after going ahead.
Spain could partly thank Lucas Digne for terrible defending that conceded a penalty midway through the first half, even if there were some doubts about the award’s validity. Mikel Oyarzabal converted emphatically and the jeopardy thereafter was entirely superficial. Pedro Porro’s slickly-worked second settled the issue emphatically. Nobody will make the mistake of downplaying their prospects of seeing the job through now; France, dazed and resoundingly beaten, cut the figure of a side that could not comprehend what was happening.
A football match finally broke out after the unbearably shrill DJ-led buildup that worked tirelessly to demolish any semblance of atmosphere before kick-off. A World Cup semi-final deserves better than this, the closed roof doing nothing to alleviate the oppressive acoustic effect, but the sport has found a knack of riding out most attempts to cheapen it over the past month.
These teams do not bellow indistinguishable noises into the eardrums; they are sinuous, subtle, scintillating when controlling the volume themselves. It was no surprise to see Spain sticking with the starting XI that overcame Belgium, meaning Mikel Merino would again be primed for a supersub role. Deschamps enlisted the fit-again Aurélien Tchouaméni in midfield, which felt harsh on Manu Koné, and chose the directness of Bradley Barcola over Désiré Doué’s defter gifts.
Barcola skipped past Pedro Porro at the first invitation following six minutes of largely sterile Spain possession. Control would be essential for Luis de La Fuente and his players. An early chance arose for Álex Baena to take a more direct route but he smacked a free-kick into the wall from right of centre.
It was that kind of start, Mbappé the next to squander a decent attack when overcooking a pass towards Ousmane Dembélé. When France found some flow, Michael Olise cushioning to Dembélé before a sublime first-time ball towards Mbappé, Spain’s defence were back in numbers.
Then Digne’s carelessness blew such a respectful opening spell out of the water. The left-back did not get enough purchase on a cross from the opposite side, the ball popping up off his head and allowing Lamine Yamal to contest. Lamine Yamal nudged it past Digne, seemingly via the upper portion of his arm, and was crudely felled as his opponent panicked.
The referee, Iván Barton, had an easy decision to make on that front but there was still the question of whether the video assistant referee would intervene. The on-field decision stood but replays appeared to confirm Lamine Yamal had turned limb towards ball.
Oyarzabal, in no mood to reject a gift, swept the spot-kick past Mike Maignan. Within minutes France’s backline had a new disruption to absorb, William Saliba pulling up and making way for Maxence Lacroix. They were having to chase Spain and could not assert any grip in midfield. When Barcola managed another nibble at Porro, he ran out of ideas and slashed wildly over.
This was a malaise, Maignan presenting a clearance straight to Baena. The sequence that ensued was thrilling, Dani Olmo and Lamine Yamal combining to tee up Fabián Ruiz. It would have been a tap-in for the Paris Saint-Germain midfielder had Dayot Upamecano not appeared from nowhere to block.
Spain would have to content themselves with a narrow interval lead but could consider their mission accomplished perfectly so far. For all the pre-match hype, France’s attackers had barely caused a single ripple of anxiety.
Koné replaced Adrien Rabiot, a walking red card since being booked early on, for the second period. France needed 11 players but also required an uplift in every area. Instead Spain remained in total command, Oyarzabal shooting over. France could not muster enough of the ball to pose any sustained threat. When they wrought an opportunity to build down the right, Dembélé passed straight out of play.
Before the hour it was time for Doué. The bet on Barcola’s speed had failed and things soon deteriorated further. While Spain had been managing proceedings consummately, they had never looked blind to another opening. Porro’s goal was worked beautifully, a tumbling Olmo managing to return his pass as a chasm opened on France’s left side. The finish was unerring; Spain were making this look easy.
The scoreline would have given exactly that impression had a narrow offside call not denied Lamine Yamal a third. It was the 64th minute before Mbappé made any kind of impression, Unai Simón batting his cross-shot from the byline behind. Then he saw Marc Cucurella deflect a drive just wide but Deschamps must have been desperate for the three-minute coaching break that followed.
It made little difference. Mbappé whipped a free-kick over but Ferran Torres could have added gloss for Spain, who will take some beating now.
