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Rayan Cherki has come under fire for his comments after France's defeat to Spain at the 2026 World Cup on Tuesday evening.
France were phenomenal en route to the semi-finals as they swept aside every team in their path. They beat Senegal, Iraq and Norway in the group stage, before beating Sweden, Paraguay and Morocco to set up a showdown with Spain.
However, they were outclassed by Luis de la Fuente's side in their semi-final clash at Dallas Stadium. Spain took the lead in the first-half when Mikel Oyarazbal converted from the penalty spot.
The reigning European champions doubled their lead just before the hour-mark when Pedro Porro found a way past Mike Maignan.
France did all they could to try and get back in the game but, despite their best efforts, they could not breach Spain's defence and suffered a 2-0 defeat.
Rayan Cherki's Post-Match Comments Cause a Stir
Cherki started the match on the bench before entering the fray with 18 minutes remaining. He didn't hold back as he gave a very honest interview after the game.
He said, per Marca: "They were better in every aspect of the game. They wanted it more than we did. I am convinced that we are the better team, but this afternoon they were superior. They did not apply excessive pressure, it wasn’t all over the pitch; there was time to play. Maybe we didn’t know how to control our emotions."
Cherki then said France 'didn't lose against Spain' and that they 'lost against ourselves'. He added, per The Athletic:
“It’s an immense disappointment. Today we lost against ourselves. We didn’t lose against the referee, we didn’t lose against Spain, we lost against ourselves. You all know that everyone was scared of us. The only team who were capable of eliminating us was ourselves. Today is terrible.”
Cherki's comments haven't gone down well, particularly with Spaniards. One fan said: "What a complete moron. Today Spain has swept you away."
A second commented: "Even when losing they still can't acknowledge that Spain is the one that made them small", while a third wrote: "The arrogance is exactly why France keeps losing these big matches."
A fourth said: "He might be very talented, but he's arrogant and disrespectful," while a fifth stated: "He talks so much rubbish."
Kylian Mbappe Slams France's Tactics
Kylian Mbappe also gave an eye-opening interview after the match as he questioned France's tactics. He said:
“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.”
He added: "Right from the start, we were pressing three against two. We messed up there. Against Spain, we need to press one for one. And even when we recovered the ball. Our ball touches, and our movements were not worthy of a World Cup semifinal. We did not have what it takes to go to the World Cup final, to be honest.”
Spain will play either England or Argentina in the World Cup final on Sunday, July 19. France will contest the third-placed match the day prior.
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