Spain coach Luis de la Fuente saluted his players as the “best team in the world” on Tuesday after a stunning 2-0 FIFA World Cup 2026 semifinal victory against France.
De la Fuente, who had repeatedly said Spain was the best side in the tournament, was left beaming with pride as La Roja outplayed France to reach Sunday’s 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.
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“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,” he added.
De la Fuente is now contemplating Spain’s first World Cup final appearance since 2010.
“These players deserve everything -- day after day they’ve shown their commitment, their solidarity, their generosity, their talent. They make the difficult look easy,” de la Fuente added of his team.
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Published on Jul 15, 2026