4-0 Rout in Atlanta
World Cup: Spain vs. Saudi Arabia LIVE at 6 p.m.
Spain finally lived up to its status as a co-favorite at the World Cup in its second Group H match. With superstar Lamine Yamal in the starting lineup for the first time, the European champions crushed the massive underdog Saudi Arabia 4-0 in Atlanta. The score was already 3-0 by the 24th minute.
Spain is now well on its way to the Round of 16—where it could face Austria.
Saudi Arabia stood no chance
Six days after the disappointing 0-0 draw against Cape Verde, Yamal (10th) and Mikel Oyarzabal (21st, 24th) established a clear lead early on, and an own goal by Hassan Al-Tambaktis (49th) shortly after halftime sealed the final score of a completely one-sided match. Playing like this, Spain has nothing to fear ahead of Friday’s final group stage match against Uruguay.
Yamal got off to a flying start, Oyarzabal with a brace
Yamal, whose starting spot had been in doubt due to a thigh injury, promptly made his mark in the opening stages. The 18-year-old brought the dynamism and unpredictability to Spain’s play that the “Furia Roja” had been lacking in their opener, and broke the deadlock early with the 1-0 goal off a pass from Oyarzabal.
The assist provider followed that up with a brace within four minutes and narrowly missed a perfect hat trick when his shot hit the crossbar (35th minute).
Spain remained in control mode
Spain’s defense confidently cleared Saudi Arabia’s few offensive attempts; after the restart, the celebration for coach Luis de la Fuente’s 65th birthday continued—albeit at a slightly more subdued pace and without Oyarzabal and Yamal.
A Cucurella volley off a corner was unluckily deflected into an own goal by Al-Tambakti, but that was the end of the scoring. Spain squandered a few chances, shifted into a lower gear, and yet never found themselves in any real trouble.
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