Lamine Yamal turned 19 on Monday and marked the occasion with a self-purchased, jewel-encrusted necklace and a press conference that calmly extinguished any flicker of pre-match polemic. Speaking in Dallas ahead of Spain’s World Cup semi-final against France, the Barcelona forward addressed remarks he had made after the quarter-final victory over Belgium, when he was quoted saying he did not fear Les Bleus. “I was asked if I was afraid of France, and I said no,” Yamal explained, according to Spanish outlets. “We are European champions. It’s simply football.” The clarification, delivered with a relaxed smile, was widely interpreted in Madrid and Buenos Aires as a deliberate move to lower the temperature before a fixture freighted with recent history.

That history includes Spain’s 2-1 win over France in the Euro 2024 semi-final and a 5-4 victory in the 2025 Nations League last four. Yamal, who scored a spectacular goal in the first of those encounters, has found the net only once at this tournament, a fact that has drawn scrutiny in Indonesian and other international media. He addressed the criticism directly. “You all say I’m not at my best, so you shouldn’t expect too much from me,” he said, as reported by Viva.co.id and Media Indonesia. “But I’m sure tomorrow will be a special day.” He added that his contribution could not be measured solely in goals and assists, and he accepted a challenge from head coach Luis de la Fuente to score against France, saying, “That’s why I came here.”

De la Fuente, for his part, deflected the favourite’s tag that France coach Didier Deschamps had placed on Spain, and instead praised the progress of the French side since their last meetings. “They are a much better team,” he said, according to Atlasinfo. “Mbappé has progressed, Dembélé has improved … we are all better.” The 65-year-old, who described himself as a romantic who enjoys Julio Iglesias, stressed the importance of emotional balance. “The key is finding equilibrium. We must not let responsibility make us nervous,” he said, a sentiment echoed across Spanish-language dispatches. He also paid tribute to Kylian Mbappé as “a great of world football,” brushing aside any criticism of the French captain’s club form.

Yamal, meanwhile, looked beyond the immediate contest to the prize: a trip to New York for the final. “The best gift would be a win on Tuesday and a trip to New York,” he said, a line carried by Argentine news agency Noticias Argentinas. He also distanced himself from controversial remarks by a former Spanish prime minister about the composition of the French squad, stating that football “serves to integrate society.” The semi-final, to be played at Arlington’s AT&T Stadium, will open with a minute’s silence marking the tenth anniversary of the Nice terror attack, Indonesian media noted. For Spain, it represents a first shot at a World Cup final since their 2010 triumph; for Yamal, a chance to deliver on his birthday wish.