ARLINGTON, Texas — As anticipation builds ahead of Tuesday’s highly anticipated World Cup semifinal showdown between France and Spain, one of the tournament’s biggest storylines has been resolved: star French striker Kylian Mbappé will feature in Les Bleus’ starting lineup, despite exiting the team’s quarterfinal clash with Morocco early due to a minor right ankle injury.
Mbappé left the pitch in the 77th minute of France’s quarterfinal victory, but the forward’s fitness has been cleared by head coach Didier Deschamps, who confirmed that the French captain is in full health to lead his side into the semifinal. This start will mark Mbappé’s seventh consecutive opening lineup appearance at this tournament, one of just six French players to start every match for the defending champions.
The 27-year-old comes into the semifinal locked in a tight race for the tournament’s Golden Boot, having notched eight goals so far — a tally that puts him level with Argentina’s Lionel Messi, the other leading contender for the award. Across his entire World Cup career, Messi holds the all-time record with 21 tournament goals, just one goal ahead of Mbappé’s career total of 20.
Joining Mbappé in the French starting eleven will be fellow forward Ousmane Dembélé and goalkeeper Mike Maignan, who are also among the six players to have started every one of France’s seven matches leading into this semifinal.
For Spain, the starting lineup brings both consistency and a notable absence. Teenage sensation Lamine Yamal will make his sixth consecutive start for La Roja, just one day after celebrating his 19th birthday. The Barcelona winger made an early mark on the tournament after coming off the bench in Spain’s opening draw against Cape Verde, a small island nation that pulled off one of the biggest upsets of this World Cup by holding Spain to a 0-0 draw.
Versatile Arsenal forward Mikel Merino, meanwhile, is set to return to the substitute bench for the sixth time in Spain’s seven matches at the tournament. Merino has become Spain’s unlikely match-winner off the bench in knockout play: the utility player scored late game-winning goals just minutes after entering as a substitute in both the round of 16 1-0 win over Portugal and the 2-1 quarterfinal defeat of Belgium.
The one key absence for Spain is forward Nico Williams, who has been sidelined by a persistent muscle injury that first emerged during the team’s final group stage match against Uruguay. Williams came off the bench in all three of Spain’s opening group games, then missed the first two knockout matches before making a brief return as a 79th-minute substitute against Belgium, but was not deemed fit enough to earn a spot in the starting lineup for the semifinal.