ARLINGTON, Texas — France head coach Didier Deschamps playfully deflected questions about his team’s World Cup favorite status on Monday, choosing instead to praise semifinal opponent Spain and project a “spectacular game” on Tuesday.
“They can attack and defend very well,” Deschamps said of Spain. “They only conceded one goal. Luis and myself, we know how to defend well, but with the quality of the two teams offensively we could think it is going to be a spectacular game.”
Spain and France entered the World Cup as pre-tournament favorites. Opta gave Spain the best title odds to start (16.1%), with France second at 13.0%. The sportsbooks saw things the same way: DraftKings listed Spain as the pre-tournament favorite at +450, with France second at +475.
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“If you saw what Spain did in the first match against Cape Verde [a 0-0 draw], forget about that,” he said. “But in the rest, Spain confirmed they are the favorite. I don’t want to add extra pressure to Luis [de la Fuente, the manager] and their team,” he added jokingly, “he knows very well people are expecting greatly of their team.”
Aside from Spain’s scoreless draw against Cape Verde, a match played without star winger Lamine Yamal in the starting lineup, neither team has given either the computers or oddsmakers reason to doubt.
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France have produced the best goal differential (+2.3 per match) and xG differential (+1.7 per match), averaging the fourth-most goals (2.7) and allowing the third-fewest (0.3). Spain, meanwhile, have allowed the fewest goals (one in six matches) and second-fewest shot attempts (5.8 per match).
De La Fuente, on the other hand, avoided getting roped into the favorites conversation altogether. “I’ve said from the very beginning that talk about favorites doesn’t decide anything,” he said. “It’s true that we’re two outstanding national teams, exactly the kind of matchup you’d expect in a major final. Whether one team is considered the favorite isn’t especially important.
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“I’d also like to remember a great friend of mine, who used to say in situations like this: ‘If they want to call someone the favorite, let them.’ We don’t want any extra pressure. The only pressure we have is the responsibility we owe to our country, our supporters, and ourselves.”
Spain and France will kick off at 3 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The winner will play Wednesday’s England–Argentina winner in the finals in New Jersey on Sunday.
