Spain routs Saudi Arabia 4-0 as Yamal and Oyarzabal star in Atlanta

Spain delivered a commanding response to their opening draw, overwhelming Saudi Arabia 4-0 at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Yamal, making his first start of the tournament, opened the scoring after 10 minutes, and Oyarzabal struck twice in three minutes before an own goal by Hassan Al-Tambakti completed the rout.

A quickfire blitz

Spain took control immediately. At 10 minutes, a low cross from Oyarzabal cut across the area and Yamal slid in at the far post for his maiden World Cup goal. Eleven minutes later, Oyarzabal doubled the lead, reacting quickest after a corner caused chaos in the Saudi box, steering the ball past Mohammed Al-Owais with his left foot. Then, in the 24th minute, Marc Cucurella fed Dani Olmo, whose header teed up Oyarzabal to sweep home his second and make it 3-0 before the cooling break.

Oyarzabal takes charge

Oyarzabal almost completed a first-half hat-trick in the 36th minute, striking the crossbar after a defensive error by Saudi Arabia. Spain maintained the pressure after the interval. Four minutes into the second half, Cucurella’s shot was parried by Al-Owais, only for the ball to ricochet off the sliding Al-Tambakti and trickle over the line. A late Ferran Torres goal was disallowed by VAR for offside, keeping the final margin at four.

Group H picture

The win moved Spain to four points at the top of Group H, two ahead of Saudi Arabia (one point) and Cape Verde (one point). Uruguay, yet to play later on 21 June, can also reach four points with a victory. Saudi Arabia face Cape Verde on 27 June, while Spain take on Uruguay the same day.

Pre-match pressure and reaction

The Spanish camp had admitted to nerves after a scoreless debut against Cape Verde. Defender Pau Cubarsí had told the press before the match:

“We didn't play a great game. Now we have recharged our batteries and are very eager to show our best.”

Yamal, still recovering from a thigh injury that had limited him to 25 minutes in the opener, had played down expectations:

“I'm not obsessed with goals: you can score 16 and then maybe go out in the semifinal…”

Coach Luis de la Fuente, who turned 65 on matchday, celebrated with a display that restored Spain's credentials as one of the tournament favourites.