Ousmane Dembélé Reportedly Ripped into Teammates at Halftime Against Spain

Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembélé reportedly spoke up in the French locker room at halftime during the World Cup semi-final against Spain, expressing his dissatisfaction with the team's performance. This was reported by "L'Équipe."

On Tuesday evening, "Les Bleus" were trailing by a goal at halftime after Spain converted a penalty. In an attempt to motivate his teammates, Dembélé reportedly criticized the team's pressing.

To try and spark a comeback, the 2025 Ballon d'Or recipient addressed the team in the locker room during the break of the semi-final against Spain, which ultimately ended 0-2. He reportedly explained that he found the team's pressing uncoordinated.

However, his remarks reportedly annoyed some of his teammates, who were left with the impression that Dembélé only gets upset when he himself is struggling, and not under other circumstances.

France was behind at halftime after a penalty goal from Mikel Oyarzabal in the 22nd minute. After play resumed, "Les Bleus" failed to turn the tide of the match and conceded a second goal shortly before the hour mark, scored by Pedro Porro in the 58th minute.

World Cup matches are broadcast live on bnt.sportal.bg. The platform will stream all 104 matches from the 2026 World Cup schedule in real-time.

France will play for third place against England at midnight Bulgarian time, while Spain will face Argentina in the final on Sunday evening at 10:00 PM.