De la Fuente salutes 'best team in world' Spain after France upset

AFP

Arlington, US

Spain's head coach Luis de la Fuente gives an MD-1 press conference at the Dallas Stadium in Arlington on 13 July, 2026.AFP

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente saluted his players as the "best team in the world" on Tuesday (Bangladesh time Wednesday) after a stunning 2-0 World Cup semi-final upset of France.

De la Fuente, who had repeatedly said Spain were the best side in the tournament, was left beaming with pride as La Roja outplayed France to reach Sunday's World Cup final.

It was another tactical masterpiece by the Spanish coach, who oversaw La Roja's European Championship victory in 2024 and has now beaten France in three straight competitive matches.

Spain coach Luis De La Fuente celebrates after the match as they advance to the World Cup final at FIFA World Cup 2026 - Semi Final - France v Spain - Dallas Stadium, Arlington, Texas, US - 14 July, 2026.

Reuters

"We started almost four years ago with an idea and we've been faithful to that idea and it's brought us here," de la Fuente said.

"Today we faced one of the best national teams in the world, but in front of them they had the best team in the world. That is different."

De la Fuente is now contemplating Spain's first World Cup final appearance since 2010.

"These players deserve everything -- day after day they've showed their commitment, their solidarity, their generosity, their talent," de la Fuente added of his team. "They make the difficult look easy."