Didier Deschamps’ reign as France boss ended in defeat to Spain and he has been left seething with Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton.

A 2-0 loss at Dallas Stadium on Tuesday meant there was to be no fairytale ending at the World Cup for Deschamps. His Les Bleus were deservedly beaten by La Roja thanks to goals from Mikel Oyarzabal (22′ P) and Pedro Porro (58′).

Deschamps leaves his role as manager in bittersweet fashion ahead of Zinedine Zidane’s arrival as the country’s new coach. The 57-year-old has slammed Barton and questioned his appointment as referee for such a high-profile game.

‘Good Enough?’ – Deschamps Takes Swipe at Referee

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Deschamps has been in charge of France since the summer of 2012 and oversaw his nation’s World Cup win in 2018. He was looking to end his tenure as a world champion but will have to settle for a potential third-place finish.

The Frenchman took issue with several calls made during the semi-final when speaking after the game. He said (via L’Equipe): “Then I ask a question, and I’m not going to answer it: ‘Is the referee good enough to officiate a World Cup semi-final?’ And I’m not saying this because we lost today but there were certain situations… Often unfavorable to us as well.”

Deschamps did acknowledge that his side were “a bit below par and less dangerous offensively.” They were favourites heading into the game, but Kylian Mbappe and Michael Olise were noticeably not at their best.

The departing France boss said although it “hurts”, he and his team “have to accept it.” He’s looking ahead to the third-place match, which will come up against Argentina or England, who collide in the other semi-final tomorrow night.

Although Deschamps didn’t specify which decisions he felt went against the French, there were some big calls. Spain were awarded a penalty after Lucas Digne unintentionally kicked Lamine Yamal.

Barton Unworthy of World Cup Semi-Final?

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Barton had taken charge of three games at the World Cup before officiating tonight’s semi-final between France and Spain. His most recent outing saw him referee Switzerland’s Round fo 16 penalty shootout win over Colombia.

The 35-year-old became the first referee to send a player off for covering their mouth while talking to an opponent. He sent Miguel Almiron off during Paraguay’s 1-0 win over Turkiye in the group stages.

The line he gave when dishing out the red card after VAR intervened and he reviewed the incident has gone viral. He said, “After review, number 10, Paraguay, cover his mouth, decision is red card.”

There was no sending off in France’s defeat to Spain despite Barton’s track record of strict discipline. This is his second appearance at a World Cup, having officiated at the 2022 tournament in Qatar.

It was billed as the biggest game of the 2026 World Cup so far, but it could be argued that only one team turned up. Indeed, Spain were at their best at Dallas Stadium, but France really didn’t turn up.

The French were just about considered the favourites going into the match, having looked the strongest team at the tournament. But Spain were always going to be tough opponents, conceding just one goal this summer to date.

They maintained that impressive run as they dominated the game, stifling France’s many talented attackers, while also springing forward themselves to score twice and win the game 2-0. After Lamine Yamal was fouled, Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring in the first half from the penalty spot, before Perdo Porro finished a fine move in the 58th minute to kill off the game.

France captain Kylian Mbappe had been in blistering form ahead of the game, scoring a tournament-high eight goals, but he was very quiet on the day. He has now spoken about what went wrong tactically for his nation.

Mbappe Appears Unhappy With Deschamps’ Tactics

Kyle Ross (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters)

Speaking to the press after the game, Mbappe made it very clear that his team did not do enough to win the match and make it into what would have been a third consecutive World Cup final. He began:

“I think we didn’t play our game, neither technically nor tactically. When you don’t do what you’re supposed to do in a World Cup semifinal, you don’t win. Spain stayed true to their game plan.”

Mbappe then continued in a way which could be construed as the forward questioning the tactics of his manager Didier Deschamps. Speaking emotionally, he added:

Deschamps Discusses France’s World Cup Exit

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It’s not hard to see why Mbappe was so frustrated with his team’s tactics as they put up such a limp fight on the day. The Frenchman was starved of service, but also failed to get himself into the game.

As per Squawka, he finished the match with zero shots on target, zero chances created, just one take-on completed, one foul won, and only 12 passes completed from 34 touches. Before this defeat, the only other match Mbappe had lost across three World Cups was the 2022 final against Argentina – in which he scored a hat-trick and only lost on penalties.

Speaking after the game, manager Deschamps was also unhappy with his team’s performance, although he pointed to issues on the ball, as opposed to any of his own tactical shortcomings. He said:

“We were a bit below par and less dangerous offensively than we could have been. We made a few technical errors and missed passes that could have led to situations and chances. We have to accept it; this is the highest level, even if it hurts. It was the last step before this potential final… So we’ll play the third-place match. We’ll play it; it doesn’t take anything away from what we’ve achieved. But in this match, Spain showed something extra.”

Deschamps will leave France after the third-place play-off match, with this tournament known to be his final attempt to win another major honour with the national team.

Alan Sugar has been called out for his comments over Ally McCoist’s commentary during Spain’s 2-0 win over France in their World Cup semi-final.

The Scottish commentator is one of the most popular among British football fans and joined Sam Matterface and Lee Dixon to call the game on ITV. It’s the first time the broadcaster has used a three-man commentary team during the tournament.

McCoist has been covering other games in the USA, Canada and Mexico and has often been praised by fans for his passion and comedic tone. Sugar took issue with him calling the action during the clash at Dallas Stadium on Tuesday night.

Sugar acknowledged McCoist’s experience in the game but riled up viewers with a controversial claim. He wrote on his X account: “Ally McCoist is very well respected for football knowledge. But I am sorry to say I can’t understand a word he is saying.”

McCoist’s Scottish accent seemed to irk Sugar, who seemingly hadn’t heard him commentate on other games during the World Cup. His remarks didn’t go down well with fans who felt they were unnecessary.

One fan responded to The Apprentice ‘boss’: “Says more about you than him I can understand every word and he is a great pundit.”

Another viewer hit out at the British businessman: “How can I, a Nigerian understand him very well and you an English man is struggling to understand him? make it make sense!”

One added: “Just rude. Not hard to understand at all…”

Another replied: “That’s a “you” problem I’m afraid.”

One gave a brutal response: “Maybe just an ignorant old man who chooses not to try. Weird how we can understand your accent but we apparently speak in an alien language.”

Another added: “Typical Englishman remark really, extremely wealthy and successful individual yet so ignorant and rude in your old age.”

McCoist usually calls Premier League action on TNT Sport but also works for ITV for events such as the World Cup. The legendary former Scotland and Rangers striker has become one of the most adored pundits.

There was plenty of excitement for McCoist to call during Spain’s 2-0 win over favourites France. An early penalty from Mikel Oyarzabal gave the European champions the lead before Tottenham Hotspur’s Pedro Porro added a second in the second half.

McCoist’s appearance on co-commentary will have come as a pleasant surprise for many viewers who have taken issue with ITV’s main duo. Many fans have been critical of Matterface and Dixon due to a lack of chemistry.

Particularly Dixon’s lack of energy, and despite this, ITV have persisted with him to call England games. The Arsenal legend is often deemed monotone and this hasn’t gone unnoticed by the media.

The i Paper claimed that Dixon was “sucking the joy out of the World Cup” while The Telegraph describe him and Matterface as the “not-so-dynamic duo.”

Perhaps that’s why McCoist joined the pair for Spain’s encounter with France. There have been debates over which broadcaster is winning, and many believe the BBC’s commentary has been the better of the two.