France and Spain face off in the Euro 2024 semi-finals on Tuesday, with the winner advancing to Sunday’s final against either England or the Netherlands.
Spain has been the best team in the tournament, winning all five games and outscoring opponents 11-2. They beat Germany in extra time in the quarterfinals after beating Georgia in the round of 16. Spain will play without several key players on Tuesday, including injured midfielder Pedri as well as suspended defenders Dani Carvajal and Robin Le Normand.
Despite France’s incredibly talented squad, the team has reached the semifinals of the tournament in Munich. After finishing second to Austria in group play, France defeated Belgium 1-0 in the knockout stage before beating Portugal on penalties after 120 minutes of scoreless action in the quarterfinals. They have scored just three times in five games: two own goals and a Kylian Mbappe penalty.
Stay tuned for live updates from Tuesday’s match:
Spain vs France 2nd half begins
Both teams dominated each other for the first 10 minutes of the second half, with Spain holding a 2-1 lead in this Euro 2024 semi-final.
Spain made their first change of the game in the 57th minute, removing 38-year-old right back Jesus Navas and bringing on Daniel Vivian.
Halftime: Spain 2, France 1
After a 2–1 first half, Spain went into halftime with three goals in the first 25 minutes. France opened the scoring with a header by Randall Kolo Muani in the eighth minute, but Spain regained the lead with goals in the 21st minute (Lamine Yamal) and the 25th minute (Dani Olmo).
Goal! Spain takes a 2-1 lead against France
Spain won through an own goal by France defender Jules Kounde, but the goal was eventually credited to Dani Olmo who shot across the face of goal in the 25th minute.
After falling behind in the first 10 minutes, Spain took the lead by scoring goals in the 21st and 25th minutes.
Goal! 16-year-old Lemin Yamal makes the score 1-1
Spanish teenager Lamine Yamal tied the game with a superb curling goal from outside the penalty area which beat France goalkeeper Mike Maignan and headed into the far corner.
The youngest player in European Championship history – and now the youngest goalscorer – 16-year-old Yamal assisted three of Spain’s goals in the tournament’s first five games.
Yamal, who will turn 17 on Saturday, made 37 league appearances for Barcelona in the 2023-24 campaign, his first full season with the senior team.
Goal! Kolo Muani gives France an early lead
Randall Kolo Muani gave France a 1-0 lead in the eighth minute with a header from Kylian Mbappe’s cross.
25-year-old Kolo Muani’s goal came after some Spanish pressure and was much-needed for the French team, which has struggled to score in the tournament.
Spain vs France match begins in Euro 2024 semi-final
The Euro 2024 semi-final between Spain and France has officially begun in Munich, with the winner progressing to Sunday’s final.
Spain worked the ball into some dangerous areas in the first few minutes of the game, with Fabian Ruiz failing to convert a free header from 16-year-old Lamine Yamal’s curling cross in the fifth minute.
France vs Spain Lineup: Kylian Mbappe starts
Spain will enter the semi-finals without their three top players – Pedri (injured), Dani Carvajal (suspended) and Robin Le Normand (suspended).
Spain: Unai Simon; Jesus Navas, Nacho, Aymeric Laporte, Marc Cucurella; Rodri, Fabian Ruiz; Lamine Yamal, Dani Olmo, Nico Williams; Alvaro Morata (c).
France: Mike Maignan; Jules Kounde, Dayot Upamecano, William Saliba, Theo Hernandez; N’Golo Kante, Aurelien Tchouameni, Adrien Rabiot; Ousmane Dembele, Randall Kolo Muani, Kylian Mbappe (captain)
France vs Spain Odds
Regular Time Results:
- France: +200
- Spain: +170
- Drag: +180
to advance:
Euro 2024 TV Channel
The France vs Spain match will be telecast on Tuesday fox and can be streamed via FoxSports.com or Fubo,
Jesus Navas, age 38, leaves for Spain
Right back Dani Carvajal will miss the semi-finals through suspension, leaving 38-year-old Jesus Navas to take over the starting role for Spain.
Navas made his international debut in 2009 and won the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 with Spain, playing his club football for Sevilla and Manchester City. He recently signed a “lifetime” contract with his childhood club Sevilla.
Will Kylian Mbappe perform well in France vs Spain match?
France coach Didier Deschamps is confident Kylian Mbappe will return to form for Tuesday’s semi-final against Spain despite his struggles in the tournament.
Mbappe suffered a broken nose at the start of Euro 2024, meaning he will have to wear a mask, but even with the protection he struggled after being hit in the face by a ball against Portugal, was not as involved as before and played without his usual grace.
Deschamps said the drop in form of Mbappe, whose only goal in the tournament was a penalty against Poland in the group stage, was understandable given a number of failures in recent weeks.
“It’s not just about the last game, it’s about what he suffered before, the back problem at the end of the league season, the nose injury etc. He could have been ruled out of the tournament,” Deschamps told reporters.
– Reuters
Lamin Yamal performed brilliantly for Spain At the age of 16
The youngest player in Euros history, Spain’s Lamine Yamal has been one of the most exciting players at the tournament, assisting three goals as his side won all five games on their way to the semi-finals.
France’s Adrien Rabiot told reporters ahead of Tuesday’s game that keeping Yamal uncomfortable would be the key to success.
“We saw that he was a player who knew how to handle pressure very well,” Rabiot said. “It will be up to us to put the most pressure on him, not let him feel comfortable and show him that he will have to do more than he has done so far to play in the Euro finals.”
Spain wants to see ‘beautiful sight’ against France in semi-final
Spain have enjoyed a valiant run of five straight wins in Germany, while a goalscoring France side have come in for criticism from fans and pundits for some unimpressive displays and reached the last four without scoring a single goal from open play.
Spain manager Luis de la Fuente said he does not think France are “boring” to watch but admitted Spain have a different approach to the game under him.
“We all try to create a plan of action that will help you win. Our model is based on doing that through a beautiful spectacle,” he said at a press conference.
“Spain are an attractive team, I won’t deny that, it’s our DNA, but at the end of the day, winning is everything here. We want to play, but we want to be pragmatic.”
– Reuters
Pedri’s injury troubles Spain
Spain’s 21-year-old midfield star Pedri suffered a knee injury after a strong challenge from Toni Kroos in the quarter-final against Germany that ended his tournament prematurely.
The injury occurred less than 10 minutes into the match and Kroos, who retired from the game after the defeat, apologised to Pedri in an Instagram post – to which Pedri responded.
“Thank you for your message Toni Kroos,” Pedri said. “This is football and things like this happen. Your career and history will be immortalized forever.”
France coach Didier Deschamps tries to avoid leaks
France midfielder Adrien Rabiot said coach Didier Deschamps was forced to keep his tactical plans secret, even from his players, as his strategies were being revealed ahead of European Championship matches.
Deschamps was reported to have changed the team’s line-up and tactical approach just hours before last Friday’s quarter-final win over Portugal, and did not tell the players the line-up until they had boarded the bus to the stadium.
“Inevitably, this causes collateral damage. It’s difficult for the coach, when he’s trying to implement his tactics, because information is leaked before training has even finished,” Rabiot told reporters at a press conference on Monday ahead of France’s semi-final with Spain. “It’s not nice to see that when you’ve worked really hard on something, at the end of the session, the media has already got wind of it.”
– Reuters
Where will the Euro 2024 final take place?
The Euro 2024 final will be played at Berlin’s Olympiastadion on Sunday 14 July. The ground previously hosted the 2006 World Cup final (Italy beat France) and the 2015 UEFA Champions League final.
Euro 2024 deadline
The Euro 2024 final is scheduled for Sunday, July 14 at 3pm in Berlin.
Contributor: Reuters
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