India, July 15 -- Didier Deschamps stopped short of directly blaming the referee for France's 0-2 defeat to Spain in the FIFA World Cup semifinal in Dallas, but made it clear he was unhappy with the performance of Salvadoran official Ivan Arcides Barton Cisneros. While the France boss suggested it was the overall standard of officiating that frustrated him, he also referenced Spain's first-half penalty, which sparked widespread debate on social media over whether Lamine Yamal had handled the ball before being fouled.

The incident occurred in the 22nd minute when Lucas Digne, after miscontrolling the ball with his first touch, attempted to clear it on the second but instead caught Yamal inside the penalty area. The Spain winger had nipped...