World Cup 2026: France deliver their weakest performance against Spain

14.07.26 FT World Cup

France

0

:

Spain

2

Despite the presence of Mbappé, Dembélé, Olise, and Barcola, the French attack completely collapsed. Against Spain, France posted its lowest expected goals (xG) tally since 1966.

The world’s most feared attack was left silent. Facing La Roja, France barely produced anything of note. According to Opta, France managed just 0.3 in expected goals during the match. The expected goals (xG) metric measures the likelihood of a shot resulting in a goal. With just 0.3, Les Bleus posed virtually no threat to the Spanish defense.

This is the lowest total the French national team has recorded in the World Cup since 1966. A statistic that encapsulates a nightmarish evening for Didier Deschamps’ men. Mbappé, Dembélé, Olise, Barcola... none of them managed to make a difference.

Spain suffocated France’s style of play and rightfully claimed a 2-0 victory to advance to the 2026 World Cup final.

Nafongo TRAORE |

News Editorfr, ar, en

Nafongon Moussa TRAORE, Burkinabè de 25 ans, est passionné de football, est rédacteur pour Foot Africa et commentateur pour BurkiFoot.

Related teams and leagues

France

Spain

World Cup