Yamal's Bold Declaration: France Should Fear Us in the Semifinals

Lamine Yamal's statement was resounding: He said bluntly that France should be afraid of Spain, as the two teams will face off in Arlington, Texas, for a spot in the World Cup final.

Spain narrowly beat Belgium 2-1 on Friday, with Mikel Merino scoring the winner in the 88th minute, setting up a semifinal clash with France, who eliminated Morocco 2-0 the day before.

This is the third meeting between the two sides in nearly three years — Spain came out on top in both the Euro 2024 semifinal and the 2025 Nations League encounter.

"If France has to be afraid of someone, it's us," Yamal pointed out after Spain's victory over Belgium at the California Stadium. "We knocked them out twice before. Honestly, I think we are the two best teams in this tournament. We'll see, but we are definitely not going to be scared."

This is only the second time Spain has reached a World Cup semifinal, the first being when they won the title in 2010. France, meanwhile, is aiming to reach the final for the third consecutive time — winning in 2018 and losing to Argentina in the 2022 final.

"We have high hopes for the upcoming match," Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said. "We are highly focused and know how strong the opponent is, but we are also aware that we have the quality to beat France. It's another semifinal; we have beaten them before. The match will be extremely tough, and we have to play at our best."

Despite being considered one of the top favorites for the title, Spain has not shown their best form during the North American campaign. They drew 0-0 with Cape Verde in the group stage, then beat Saudi Arabia and Uruguay. They cruised past Austria in the knockout stage but needed late winners from Merino to eliminate Portugal and Belgium.

Yamal, who has recovered from a leg injury, analyzed that opponents' defensive approach made it hard for the team to shine. "It seems like we haven't played well, but every opponent sits back and no team dares to go toe-to-toe with us. In the end, we won again, and that's what matters. We are happy to be in the semifinals. We've been here for a long time and hope to reach the final."

The Barcelona winger will turn 19 on Monday — the day before the match against France. He has scored one goal in six appearances in this tournament.