Texas, July 15 -- France midfielder Rayan Cherki expressed deep disappointment after Les Bleus' 2-0 defeat to Spain in the FIFA World Cup semifinal, saying the team's downfall was the result of their own performance rather than the opposition, according to The Athletic.

Speaking after France's exit from the tournament, Cherki admitted the players had failed to meet their own standards and said the defeat was self-inflicted.

"It's an immense disappointment. Today we lost against ourselves. We didn't lose against the referee, we didn't lose against Spain, we lost against ourselves. You all know that everyone was scared of us. The only team who were capable of eliminating us was ourselves. Today is terrible," Cherki said, as quoted by The ...