Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said on Friday that the North American World Cup semi-final between France and 'La Roja' on Tuesday in Dallas will be 'like an early final', adding 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 an early final'.

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He added, referring to the round of 16 match that Spain won 1-0 against Portugal: '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 fully realize the enormous potential they possess, but we also know that we are the only team to have defeated them in two semi-finals,' referring to the Euro 2024 semi-final (2-1) and the 2025 Nations League semi-final (5-4). He said: 'The match will be more open than ever. We have to raise our performance level, and we will give everything we have.' He added: 'The French team is in its best form and we have different playing styles. We respect our opponents very much, but we feel we are capable of beating any team.'

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