World Cup 2026 : Spain set for blockbuster semi final against France • FRANCE 24 English

Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada Thibault Courtois Manchester United goalie Sene Lamens was handed those very big gloves to Phil and unfortunately for him he failed to keep a hold of a Spanish shot and Mikel Moreno pounced on the rebound to make it 2-1 for Spain. Mikel Moreno once again coming in clutch as they say scoring the winner 100 seconds after coming in on the pitch from the bench much like he did during the game against Portugal. La Roja therefore will be playing France in their only second ever World Cup semi-final.

The last one was in 2010 and they went on to lift the trophy so might be a good sign for Spain. Of course that was an interesting game yesterday but Spain conceded for the very first time. Their defence may be under more pressure against Belgium.

I think they played the hardest opponent so far and finally Simon conceding a goal I guess it had to come sooner or later but Spain just doing what Spain always do. I mean they were patient they kept the ball they didn't really offer too many chances to Belgium and yet again Mikel Moreno it's an amazing story because you know when he was picked for the side he was actually injured and they really took a punt on him and he's worked so hard to be fit and he's certainly fit enough to come on for the last few minutes and again showing a striker's touch when it was most important. It's amazing you know one in five goals in this tournament has come from substitutes which is a really high figure and one in ten has come after the 90th minute so it shows football really is changing it's a different sport than it was 10-15 years ago and we talked about four quarters rather than two halves as well which is the most obvious sign of that but congratulations to Spain a semi-final for them as you say it's only only the second and just about deserve to go through but it was a really tough game against Belgium yesterday.

And how do you see this Spain-France kind of blockbuster game that we've got ahead of us how do you see that one going? Well I do think they're the best two sides if there's one team that can stop France it's Spain because they can keep the ball so well they can thwart opposition players but I still think France have got just enough to beat Spain they're two teams who know each other very well I think it's they're the best two teams and that's not one to be missed next Tuesday. So Belgium therefore eliminated in the quarterfinals?

Yes in quite heartbreaking circumstances as you say quite a tough game. Thibaut Courtois obviously taken off with backup keeper Sene Lamens coming on instead only to make a quite devastating mistake which led to that second Spanish goal. Thibaut Courtois had some words of encouragement for him though after the game.

Obviously I wanted to continue but yeah the coach wanted someone 100% so okay that's his decision I wanted to try to play maybe five ten more minutes to see that's not a problem and Sene obviously I gave him a big hug much more I cannot do at the moment I know it's for goalkeepers it's a shit feeling and he's a great goalkeeper and you only get stronger from this it's not a problem. Yeah what a big challenge for Lemons there to come on in a quarterfinal it must be tremendous pressure. Well goalkeepers always say it's really hard to come on as a sub and also it's a World Cup the pressure will see it was a very bright day the sun in his eyes it was really quite hard to adapt and he just fumbled a long a long range shot and it went in into the path of Marino.

It's a sad day for Belgium because we talk about this golden generation of Belgian players and we saw a couple yesterday De Bruyne Courtois is one obviously Hazard who left the international set up a few years ago it's a wonderful group of players but they haven't really delivered you know haven't really got to any finals or not won any major trophies that's a shame because they've done some great coaching in Belgium they've done some very innovative coaching in that small country produced a lot of players but it's a turning of the page but if there's one team you're going to go out to with your head held high it's Spain. Yeah and what do you think they can make of their tournament I mean it started off pretty slowly but they seem to sort of be hitting their stride in these last few games. Well they scored a lot of goals they scored 12 in three games I mean they hammered the likes of New Zealand that comeback against Senegal was amazing and you know they really could have won it yesterday it was 1-1 they had some let's say quarter chances that they could have put away but not quite good enough to be a very impressive Spain side but you know let's hope Belgium can produce another another generation of fine young players.

Meanwhile two more quarterfinals kicking off this evening. Yeah plenty more footballer of course as is per usual in these last few weeks the three lines are up against Dark Horses Norway in Miami that kicks off at 11pm Paris time a few hours later reigning champions Argentina face Switzerland and La Nati that's at 3am Paris time so a few sleeping choices to make if you're someone like me who wants to stay up for all of those games. I bet and there's a lot of attention on this England-Norway game.

Yes and mainly because of one peculiar phenomenon and that's Harland mania that being said Erling Harland isn't unique in fact there are hundreds of Harlands just not where you'd expect because the Norwegian cyborg is multiplying in Peru. Peruvian parents are so besotted with the Norwegian striker that they have named their newborns after him and according to the national identity registry 468 babies are called Harland and 91 carry his full name Erling Harland but it turns out Peruvians have actually been doing this for years. 3,402 people born in the country bear the name Messi.

Cristiano Ronaldo trails behind him with 1,185 Peruvian namesakes while 1,240 kids are named after Lamin Yamal. But at the top of the list one player stands out by miles. 33,000 people are named after Brazil's Neymar.

Absolutely mad and another demonstration of how popular Harland has become across the globe. He's gained 17 million followers on social media in the last two weeks alone. France 24's own Selena Sykes explains why.

Well he's giving Messi and Mbappe a run for their money in that race for the golden boot but Erling Harland is taking off here at the World Cup and it's not because of all the goals he's been scoring but because of his posts on social media. He obviously already has a lot of fans back in his native Norway and among those who watch the Premier League but now Harland mania has swept over the world because of all of those entertaining social media posts whether it's be on Instagram, TikTok or Snapchat. He's likened himself to Shrek.

He's shown us he's shopping sprees while out buying cowboy boots and a hat in Dallas. He's even commented on an AI generated video of himself and Vinicius Junior reacting a scene from white chicks. It's all very unfiltered behaviour that reminds us that even the most prolific of strikers is just an ordinary bloke that wants to have a laugh and well he's not the only one because there's a beauty influencer who has gone absolutely viral after several users said that she was Harland's doppelganger and I can tell you this that France 24 viewers are a bit ahead of the curve on this one because I had a few comments a few weeks ago even before the World Cup had kicked off on a social media post on our account saying that I was also a Harland lookalike.

I can maybe see it with the hair but other than that I don't personally think I see the resemblance. What do you guys think? I think I would have to see Selina running at full speed to really work out if there was a resemblance there with Erling Harland but anyway obviously both teams are much more than their star strikers Harry Kane and Erling Harland so where do you think both of their respective strengths lie in this Norwegian and these England players?

Well I think football often is a bit oversimplified and people say you just need to stop Harland. I think in this case it's true. I think England just need to stop Harland.

I think if they can stop the ball getting to Harland the main supply line will be Odegaard who's the Norwegian captain. I can't see England losing if they can stop Harland but it's easier said than done because he just needs half a chance. He is a great athlete.

He really is quick. Sometimes people forget that you know and he can get behind a defender and he's a brilliant finisher so I think that's probably England's main task. At the other end look Norway will know England really well.

Quite a few of them play in the English league. Norway as a country is obsessed with English football. It has been for for decades.

It's actually really into its English football so there'll be no surprises but I think England will have just about enough. They will know the Norwegian team pretty well and I get the impression England just getting into their stride as well. It was a really good win against Mexico.

I think that was a confidence booster because for once a lot of people were writing England off against Mexico because obviously Mexico's amazing record at home but they won that game. They're scoring goals. I think they'll have just about enough.

But England's record against European sides. You were talking about it a little bit earlier before you came into the studio. England's record against European sides isn't so great maybe.

No since 1990 which is a World Cup I remember you won't. They've only won two games against European sides in knockout football. which is really you know a very poor record and that's against Sweden and Denmark which is no no offence to Sweden and Denmark but maybe that Viking link will carry on today and they'll get another win against a Viking team.

But they've never beaten you know a France or an Italy or a Spain or a Germany but I think they will get their third win since 1990 in knockout football tonight. But it's going to be a really interesting game and definitely one to stay up for. And we saw England up against the stats and against the environment as well when they played Mexico.

Obviously going into the Azteca Stadium in the kind of mecca of Mexican football and also the whole discussion about altitude. This time the altitude is not so much a problem but the heat might be and the weather conditions. How have we seen England deal with that in the past games?

Well it's in Miami which is very humid. It can be very sticky. The game has been played at three in the afternoon local time.

So it's going to be very tough for both sides and it's going to take a lot out of those two teams. So we might not see the blood and thunder kind of Premier League very physical game. I think the first 30 minutes might be cat and mouse and the conditions will have an impact today because it is unusual for both sides.

So I don't think it will be as fast a game as we might normally get between these two quite physical sides. But it's going to be a factor and dealing with those conditions is a big part of the job for the technical staff. So we'll have to wait and see for that game.

Finally, let's take a look at this Switzerland-Argentina fixture. Yes, a fixture close to my heart. A huge task for Murat Yakin and his men, especially since Lanati lost their breakout star Joan Manzambi.

At 20 years old, he's the youngest player to have been involved in five goals in the World Cup with three goals scored and two assists. So one big question is, will his absence make things a little bit trickier for this Swiss side? I think so.

I mean, before the quarterfinals, your colleague James dared me to pick a surprise among the four quarterfinals. I'll go for this one. I'm not quite sure why, but I think Argentina have been good, but defensively they do leave a lot open at the back and they've 3-2 against Cap Verde, 3-2 in that last game against Egypt.

So they're not just sailing through like France and Spain are. And Switzerland are a little bit like Belgium. They're a very well-oiled unit.

The players know each other very well. It's a small country, so they've come up often through the youth ranks. The players know each other very well.

And it might just be the surprise today. Again, if they can stop not just Messi, but Alvarez, who's been very impressive for me, there might just be a surprise today and there might just be four Europeans in the semi-finals. Well, you were saying about how Argentina has been struggling slightly in the last two games that we've seen at least.

What do you think is the one aspect of their game that they'll be working on before going into this game against Switzerland? Well, I think they have to work on their defence because they've been caught on the break quite a few times. And they are an attacking side.

Look, Argentina are a great team to watch when they're in full flow. And we saw that in the last 15 minutes against Egypt. But when they're put under pressure, they can make mistakes.

They might be a little bit vulnerable in the air as well. And Switzerland have some big guys like Mbolo. So let's see tonight.

Argentina are favourites. Let's make no mistake. But that could be a surprise.

It might go to penalties. Well, Switzerland also hasn't reached the quarterfinals in 72 years. So obviously, you're quite the underdogs.

But it's worth mentioning that they met in Argentina in 2014. And that time, that game went to extra time. And Argentina won it in the end, though.

But if you were Maracchakin and you had those sunglasses on that made you look like a bit of a gangster, what would you do for Switzerland to try and gain an upper hand? Well, I think you have to smother this Argentine team because what they're very good at is playing in small areas with three, four players linking up really well short passes and creating space. So you might see Switzerland sit back.

That's one option. Or another option, which I think they might be worth doing, is be quite aggressive. Because if their defence is a bit of a weakness, you might see Switzerland really quite go at Argentina and try and pin them back.

So that's what's going to be fascinating for me. I don't know how Switzerland are going to play tonight. And we'll see in the first five, ten minutes.

Are they really going to go after Argentina? Or will they sit back and try and hit them on the break? Could be either way.

And they also have that aggressive pedigree, let's say in Granit Xhaka, who's always been quite a demonstrative and vocal player on the pitch. Do you think he'll be key to organising this Swiss side? Well, Xhaka just goes on and on.

You know, he was written off a few years ago when he left Arsenal to go to Germany. Now he's back in English football. And he is really their talisman and the leader.

He's had another good tournament. They'll certainly need his leadership and experience today against what is a very talented Argentina side. Extremely talented and might be Lionel Messi's last match.

Do you think that's something he's thinking about? Well, I know some Argentina fans are talking about Messi 2030 and him going on when he's 43 years old, which, you know, perhaps more likely than a Ronaldo because his game is not based on physique and being particularly fast or big. He's just a brilliant footballer.

But I think, yes, I can't see him playing another World Cup after this one. OK, well, we'll have to wait and see for those games. I'll be tuning in, of course, and we'll be back here tomorrow to go through all of those games.

But before we leave, a thought for journalist Christophe Glez, who remains detained in Algeria. He was given a seven year sentence for what was said to be glorifying terrorism. His lawyers are hoping that a presidential pardon may happen.

He was working on a report on the country's most decorated football club, Jeunesse Sportive de Kabylie, when he was arrested over two years ago. Well, thanks for watching, guys. And we'll be thanks for talking to us and we'll be watching the matches tonight.

It's been great. It's been great.