Chris Sutton said Spain gave France ‘a football lesson’ as they dominated the tournament favourites to storm into the World Cup final.
France were favourites to reach a third successive World Cup final after an impressive run in the United States but were outplayed by European champions Spain.
Mikel Oyarzabal put Spain ahead midway through the first half after Lamine Yamal won a penalty following a late tackle from Lucas Digne.
Didier Deschamps would have expected his side to improve after a poor first half but France were left with a mountain to climb when Pedro Porro scored Spain’s second with half an hour remaining.
Exclusive analysis of England v Norway
Make sense of the drama with Metro’s free daily newsletter. Sign up now.
France finished the game with one of the most dazzling attacks ever assembled but were unable to breach Spain’s goal as they exited the World Cup at the semi-final stage.
Spain were good value for their win, however, and will be favourites to win the World Cup final regardless if England or Argentina join them in Sunday’s showpiece event.
Ex-England striker Sutton was shocked by France’s sluggish performance in Dallas and said former Ballon d’Or holder Ousmane Dembele was ‘dreadful’.
‘Ousmane Dembele has been sensational at this World Cup, but tonight it looks like he has got his boots on the wrong feet,’ Sutton said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
‘He has been dreadful, he’s had a stinker. I cannot remember him playing as poorly as this.
‘France had their worst half of the tournament and Spain were deservedly in front. Spain gave proved they are the best team on the ball and the best team out of possession.
‘They work so hard out of possession. France needed to be braver on the ball in the middle of the park. Spain are pressing them, and they were the more aggressive team.
‘When you think about how impotent Kylian Mbappe has been… he hardly had a touch of the ball.
‘It was stunning from Spain. They are making the French look like fools popping the ball around them. Spain gave France a football lesson.
‘How easy has it been for Spain? Spain have made France look distinctly average. Spain scalped France. They flattened France.
‘We have given France so much praise in this tournament, but they were swatted aside by silky Spain. They played the French off the park.’
Spain will discover on Wednesday night whether they will face England or reigning champions Argentina in the World Cup final on Sunday night.
Reacting to Spain’s impressive win and France’s disappointing exit, ex-England defender Gary Neville said on ITV: ‘Absolutely incredible performance from Spain.
‘I’m going to bring it back to my favourite topic which is full-backs and the biggest differential between both teams can be told through stories of the full-backs.
‘[Pedro] Porro and [Marc] Cucurella have been absolutely outstanding against those French wide players and Lucas Digne really struggled against Lamine Yamal.
‘We talked before the game about if Yamal can turn up in the biggest moments and today he has done.
‘We’re a little bit in shock here because we all had France [to win] and they have been blown away.’
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.