Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said on Friday that the North America World Cup semi-final between France and 'La Roja' on Tuesday in Dallas will be 'like a premature final', considering that his players 'are capable of beating any team'.

The coach said in a press conference after Spain's 2-1 win over Belgium in the quarter-finals in Los Angeles, 'It is not an exaggeration to describe this match as a premature final'.

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He added, referring to the round of 16 match that Spain won against Portugal (1-0), 'Our match against Portugal was also like that.' He continued, 'We are among the teams capable of reaching the final. We are now fully focused on France, and we are fully aware of the immense potential they have, but we also know that we are the only team to have beaten them in two semi-finals,' referring to the Euro 2024 semi-final (2-1) and the 2025 UEFA Nations League semi-final (5-4). He considered that 'the match will be more open than ever. We have to raise our performance level, and we will give our all.' He added, 'The French team is in its best form and we have different playing styles. We respect our opponents greatly, but we feel capable of defeating any team.'

He also returned to his decision to start Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Fabian Ruiz over Barcelona star Pedri, after he scored Spain's first goal against Belgium. He explained that this choice 'was simply aimed at giving the team a different face at a time when we needed Fabian Ruiz's energy', stressing that 'the issue of who starts is not the most important'.