Fuming Didier Deschamps questions whether World Cup referee was 'up to the standard required' to take charge of France's semi-final defeat by Spain

Exasperated Didier Deschamps questioned whether Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton was 'up to the standard required' to take charge of a World Cup semi-final after

Spain eliminated France

.

Deschamps' side were the tournament favourites but they found themselves thoroughly outclassed in Dallas, as Spain produced a footballing lesson to win 1-0, thanks to Mikel Oyarzabal's penalty.

France struggled to create anything and were fortunate not to have Michael Olise sent off for a rash tackle on

Rodri

But when all was said and done and France were eliminated in what will now be Deschamps' penultimate game in charge, Les Bleus manager was pointing fingers at the referee.

'The refereeing? If I say anything, I'll come across as a whinger because we lost,' he said in his pitch-side interview.

Didier Deschamps asked reporters if the semi-final referee was suitable for such a big match

Ivan Barton took charge of the match between France and Spain in Dallas on Tuesday night

'But I'm asking you whether the referee is up to the standard required to officiate a semi-final?

'There was the penalty, but that's not all – it was just one thing on top of another. I've got nothing against tonight's referee, but ask yourselves that question.'

When the dust settles, France won't be able, in their heart of hearts, to pin this on the officiating.

The winning goal came from the penalty spot after Lucas Digne clattered Lamine Yamal, swinging a leg with no idea the dangerous Spain attacker was behind him.

France's fearsome front four of Kylian Mbappe, Olise, Ousmane Dembele and Bradley Barcola all struggled for the first time all tournament to have any real influence.

'There's a lot of disappointment,' Deschamps added.

'The players are devastated. We had high hopes, but we have to be realistic.

'Granted, the other team were well prepared; it's primarily our own fault.

'Is the referee up to the standard required to officiate a World Cup semi-final? The main reason [we lost] is, of course, that we weren't quite at our best – we were less of a threat and made errors.

Spain produced a footballing masterclass to make France look incredibly ordinary in a 1-0 loss

'We have to accept that. This is top-level football. We're going to play in the third-place play-off; I'm not going to write everything off, but in this particular match, Spain were simply a cut above.'

Rayan Cherki, who was sent on from the bench as a last-gasp roll of the dice by Deschamps, said of the defeat: 'It's a big disappointment.

'It's not about the referee… we didn't play the football we're used to playing. Spain did.'