Les Bleus striker insists there is no shame in being beaten by the greatest side on the globe, while goalkeeper Hugo Lloris echoed his teammate's sentiments after the defeat.
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Xabi Alonso scored in both halves to send La Roja into the last four of the competition and set up a clash with Portugal, but while the French forward was aware of Spain's strength, he believes his side could still have won on the night.
"What evaded us this evening? Goals," Benzema told TF1. "We lost to the best team in the world. It was difficult, but we played well and had a great game. We conceded a goal through their only genuine chance of the game. We are disappointed but pleased to have made the quarterfinals. We are very disappointed, because we know we could've beat them.
"In certain instances, we were better than them, but this is football. It's not a disappointment not to have scored. The only disappointment is that the team did not win, but we showed tonight that we are a good team."
Meanwhile, goalkeeper Hugo Lloris was similarly despondent after the match, but hopes France uses the defeat as a reference point for future.
"There is inevitable disappointment. We wanted to accomplish the feat, but we lacked spark in the final third," he added. "But, there is nothing to be ashamed of, [Spain] were very strong. Now, we must use this performance to build for the future.
"The choices of the coach? I didn't discuss them. We tried a few things to help us adapt to our opponent's game, but this is normal."
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