Why international football needs Spanish flair to trump French pragmatism

Celebrity Masterchef? Heartbeat? Perhaps a night of Netflix?

Those are just some of the options available to those who take the advice of Didier Deschamps and change the channel to avoid watching another wearisome performance from his France team against Spain on Tuesday night.

Deschamps recommended those disillusioned with France's style of play switch off during the group stage of Euro 2024 after his team were criticised for their defensive and pragmatic approach.

And there is no doubting he has shut out the noise as France have since laboured to a 1-0 win over Belgium in the last 16 and drawn 0-0 with Portugal in the quarter-finals before winning on penalties.

The bottom line for Deschamps - and indeed many of the team's fans - is France are into the semi-finals and nothing else matters.

Many will agree with that sentiment, especially as England have sought success with a near-symmetrical, although often less convincing, approach in the other half of the draw.

But surely there is more to football than this? Sport at this level is, above all else, entertainment is it not?

International managers have less time to work with their players than club managers, so imposing groundbreaking philosophies on the team often takes a back seat to just getting results by any means necessary.

But against the greyscale backdrop of a Euros tournament which has largely lacked any attacking verve or risk-taking from big nations, France's semi-final opponents Spain have been a breath of fresh air.

And it is for that reason that neutrals should be cheering on La Roja on Tuesday.

The Spain teams of the past have played tiki-taka football for the sake of tiki-taka football - they have made more than 1,000 passes in a single World Cup match on four occasions but won just one of those games.

But under Luis de la Fuente, it is has been a case of possession with purpose.

They no longer obsess about keeping the ball but when they do have it, they are forward-thinking, run at defences and use their width.

Wingers Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal have been a joy to watch and ahead of the semi-finals, no team has scored more than Spain's total of 11 goals or registered more attempts than their 102, while only Portugal's tally of 145 dribbles is higher than La Roja's 111.

Eight different Spanish players have found the net at Euro 2024, including unlikely goalscoring candidates such as Mikel Merino and Dani Carvajal.

And Spain have served up some terrific performances along the way.

Against Georgia in the last 16, they conceded after just 18 minutes but did not retreat, instead choosing to camp out high up the pitch, even if that meant leaving themselves vulnerable to razor-sharp counter-attacks.

The reward was a 4-1 thrashing in which Spain had 35 shots, including 13 on target.

Against Germany, meanwhile, they refused to settle for penalties, pushing forwards in extra-time and grabbing a winner in the 119th minute to dump out the hosts.

This kind of approach is one to be encouraged and rewarded. 

But if France beat Spain on Tuesday, it will be forgotten and we will instead hear commentaries of how Deschamps has masterminded another final appearance through defensive resolve and organisation - I'm sure that's something all kids want to recreate on the playground.

Perhaps it does not matter how you win as long as you do. Perhaps I am wasting my time.

But if teams like France continue to lay out the blueprint for international success in years to come, people might not change channel. They might just not switch on in the first place.

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