Balakov: France Plays Most Dominantly, Spain Lacks Something Upfront, Kane is the Strangest Striker

Football legend and former national team coach, Krasimir Balakov, was a guest on "Sportal.bg's Guest" segment. The illustrious playmaker for Sporting Lisbon and Stuttgart analyzed the semi-finalists for the 2026 World Cup, admitting he hopes to see a repeat of the previous tournament's final in Qatar, which pitted Argentina against France for the world title.

"The dynamics and physicality in modern football are becoming increasingly significant. The team with superior quality on paper can always win. Messi and Ronaldo are players with immense experience. They are intelligent, astute, anticipate situations, and are crucial to their teams. Currently, I have a soft spot for France because they play the most dominant football. For me, the French are ahead of the other teams. In the first semi-final, we'll see if defense truly wins matches. The French team has an edge over Spain. Deschamps clearly learned many lessons as a player, one of which was in Paris in 1993 – a very painful moment for the French. Bulgarian football needs investment – in infrastructure, youth academies, and coaching staff. And patience.

The Spanish truly play unique football, but I feel something is missing upfront. France, both from the bench and on the field, has many more players capable of scoring goals. Speed and reaction make the difference. In a national team, you absolutely must consider the quality of the players. The coach needs to be able to unite and motivate his team, not teach them how to play football. The Spanish lack a prolific goalscorer. Time will tell if Yamal will follow the path of Ronaldo and Messi; in some matches, we haven't seen him shine. Social media suggests he might also follow Neymar's path, but I don't know if that will prove beneficial in ten years, as the world is evolving dynamically. What matters is what he does on the pitch. Logic leads me to France in the final.

I wouldn't presume to comment on whether Ronaldo hinders Portugal. Such a player cannot be criticized. There's no need to waste words on him. You can criticize a federation president or a coach.

The English relied on Harry Kane's unique scoring instinct. In the last match, we saw they could manage without him. They have three players who can score at any time. The Argentinians play very cohesively and aggressively. They try to compensate for their minor shortcomings, and they do it very well. It's easy to start a topic and discuss it publicly. I don't believe that at such a high level, teams receive that much assistance. Germany, for example, always seems to get easy groups. In the final, no one can help. Argentina and France are the strongest contenders for the final, but sometimes things turn out differently. Semi-finals are finals before the final. No two matches are alike.

Argentina, in my opinion, underestimated Cape Verde a bit. The alarm bells rang, but motivation requires immense, constant energy. Against Cape Verde, your energy isn't the same as against England or France. In 2001, we were almost relegated with Stuttgart, then with the same players, we finished second and played in the Champions League. It's all psychology – anyone who's played knows what I'm talking about. Messi is short, stocky, his first steps are very dynamic; Ronaldo is very athletic. They have a two-to-three-year age difference, which matters at this stage of their careers. Messi played a much more significant role for his team than Ronaldo.

Tuchel is performing very well. He's doing a great job. During water breaks, you can see how the players look at him; he's found the right formula for this team. That plays a role. Harry Kane is the strangest center-forward I've seen in the last 20 years. He can score three goals, but he can also take the ball from a central defender, drop into the defensive midfielder's spot, and you'll see him in an area where he doesn't belong. And then, shortly after, he'll score a goal. He's incredibly unconventional. He's difficult to analyze; there are moments when he's completely absent from the opposition's goal. For him, moving to Bayern was the best decision – he didn't just change clubs, but also countries. I once felt I needed a change after five years at Sporting; I moved to Germany and was reborn. I'm rooting for a repeat of the final, but anything is possible. The Euro 2024 final could also be repeated.

Given what we're seeing, we have a lot of work to do in Bulgaria. It's also important whether the state will pay attention to us. Botev Plovdiv and Lokomotiv Plovdiv received help for their stadiums, which we support, but our football needs global assistance. We lack football-specific fitness facilities and many other things. I became a footballer between the ages of 10 and 16. These are the years when the foundation is built – physicality, technique, coordination, and tactical skills. Disrupt two of these, and you're 'done.' I had a plan for restarting Bulgarian football, but it remained just that. I resigned then and couldn't complete that project. Football is the biggest social product as a sport in Bulgaria. The state helps other sports more; the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU) is self-sustaining. The Hungarians invested 2.5 billion in infrastructure. And they participate in some championships, while we are nowhere to be seen.

In Germany, every club has its own academy, just like here. There, no one pays a single penny. Every club has a school. These schools are also under the club's umbrella; that's where the masses are, that's where the payments are made. That's where they observe. If there's something good, to get into the club, they enter and don't pay. In Bulgaria, we create clubs that play up to the Third League, some are even in villages, lacking traditions. There, parents pay for camps, training, clothes, everything. In highly developed countries, everything is regulated. When there's competition, there's also development," stated Krasimir Balakov.