France manager Didier Deschamps has predicted a "spectacular" World Cup semi-final against Spain in Dallas on Tuesday, as the two European heavyweights meet in a repeat of recent tournament clashes. Spain beat France in the Euro 2024 semi-final and again in a nine-goal Nations League thriller last year, but Deschamps, who is stepping down after 14 years in charge once the tournament ends, said "the past is in the past" and that his side are targeting the final.

France can become only the third nation, after West Germany and Brazil, to reach three successive World Cup finals if they win, while Deschamps conceded Spain will start as favourites after conceding just one goal in six games. Captain Kylian Mbappe, who has scored eight goals at the tournament, has been confirmed fit despite a late substitution with an ankle issue in the quarter-final win over Morocco, while Spain boss Luis de la Fuente played down suggestions his side are favourites and invoked Julius Caesar in warning of the "suffering" required to succeed.