Spain has defeated France 2-1 in the semi-final 1 of UEFA Euros 2024 and has made it to the final of a major tournament for the first time since 2012.
Spain battled France, a team that has made it to the final of the last two FIFA World Cups and won it in 2018, in the 1st semi-final of the Euros. Having been the best team in the competition so far, the Spaniards took on the weakest-looking French side in years.
To reach this point, Spain defeated Croatia, Italy, and Albania to top Group B. They then thumped Georgia 4-1 in the Round of 16 before defeating the home team and overall favorites Germany in the quarterfinals.
As for France, they have had an underwhelming journey in the UEFA Euro 2024 to this point. A win against Austria and draws against the Netherlands and Poland meant they finished second in Group D, which was also the ‘group of death’. They then defeated an underwhelming Belgium side 1-0 in the Round of 16 before trumping Portugal via penalties in the quarters.
Spain Defeats France In Euros 2024 Semi Final
And that is how we reached the Spain vs France semifinal. While Spain threatened the target in the first few minutes, it was France who opened the scoring in the eighth minute. Kylian Mbappe got free of his marker and sent a cross towards the far post. Randal Kolo Muani, who hasn’t scored a goal since February, leaped the highest and headed the ball into the net, 0-1.
After conceding a goal early, the Spaniards went on the attack as Didier Deschamps’ France sat back in defence. This bit the 2018 World Cup winners back, as in the 21st minute, 16-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal scored a stunner from outside the box. The ball darted past the French defence before curling into the top left corner, 1-1.
This goal made Yamal the youngest scorer in the history of the Euros at 16 years, 11 months, and 27 days. His 17th birthday will be on July 14th, one day before the final.
Soon after that goal, Spain scored another. In the 25th minute, a clearance by the Franch defence falls at the feet of Dani Olmo, who takes a touch before hammering it into the bottom corner, 2-1.
This was Olmo’s third goal in the UEFA Euros 2024, making him the joint top-scorer alongside the Netherlands’ Cody Gakpo, Georgia’s Georges Mikautadze, Germany’s Jamal Musiala, and Slovakia’s Ivan Schranz. However, all of Olmo’s goals have come in the knockouts.
Check Out: Spain Defeats France In Euros 2024 Semi Final
As the half-hour mark slipped by, the game slowed down as we reached half-time, following which the two teams threw more men into the attack, making attacking substitutions.
Kylian Mbappe, despite trying to produce a moment of brilliance that might create a goal, did not look his best on the field.
France’s best chance came in the 75th minute. After multiple touches and scrambling in the Spain box, full-back Theo Hernandez found the ball at his feet. Just needing a good strike into the goal, Theo skied the ball over the crossbar.
Mbappe himself found himself in a scoring position after a fine pass by Bradley Barcola and a solid dribble by himself, but the future Real Madrid played powered it over the target as well.
As the match started coming to a close, France became more and more desperate to score but failed to do so. This meant the Spain vs France match ended 2-1 in favour of Spain.
This win also meant that Spain has now become the first and only team to have won six consecutive games in one edition of the Euros. If they go on to win the final, they will become the first team to have all the matches in a Euros campaign.
As for their final opponents, the second semifinal of the UEFA Euros 2024 is between England and Netherlands, which will be played on July 11, 12:30 a.m. (IST) in Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park. The final will be played on Monday, July 15, 12:30 a., (IST) in Berlin’s Olympiastadion.
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