Cherki: 'I am convinced we are a better team, but Spain was better today'

France's Rayan Cherki admitted that Spain deserved their victory in the World Cup semi-final, stating, "Spain was better in all facets of the game. They wanted it more than us." Despite his conviction that France is the stronger team, Cherki conceded that Spain's performance on the day was superior. He reflected that perhaps the French team did not manage their emotions well during the match.

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Spain was better in all facets of the game. They wanted it more than us. I am convinced that we are a better team, but this afternoon they were superior. Maybe we didn't manage our emotions well.

Cherki, speaking in the mixed zone after the 0-2 defeat, questioned whether a lack of solutions or desire contributed to the loss. He suggested that if France had recovered more balls, they could have inflicted more damage on Spain. The team had discussed at halftime that the second goal would be crucial, believing it would be difficult for Spain to hold on if France scored it, but this did not happen.

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I don't know if we lacked solutions or desire. If we had recovered more balls, we could have hurt them more.

The French player described the elimination as a "huge disappointment," calling the match more complicated than they had anticipated. He noted Spain's deceptive pace and ability to pause the game, something he felt France should have mirrored at times. Cherki also acknowledged Spain's tactical advantage and better positioning on the field, emphasizing that World Cup semi-finals are often decided by small details.

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The disappointment is huge. We knew their main strength was playing at a deceptive pace, pausing the game. At times, we should have done the same. It was more complicated than we thought. Tactically they were better than us and were better positioned.

Maxence Lacroix, who replaced the injured William Saliba, echoed Cherki's sentiments. Lacroix stated that Spain implemented a very good tactic against France and knew where to exploit weaknesses. He felt that with France's quality, they should have performed better. Lacroix accepted that Spain was the better team and that France did not show the image they wanted to project, finding it difficult to connect with their attacking players. He concluded that France would learn from their mistakes.

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They implemented a very good tactic against us. They knew where to hurt us. With the quality we have, we should have done better. They were good and we didn't show the image we wanted to show.