Spain are finally up and running at the 2026 World Cup, after completing a comprehensive 4-0 rout of Saudi Arabia in Atlanta.
Luis de la Fuente’s side were stunned in their opening match of the finals by debutants Cape Verde, who withstood a dominant display to come away with a 0-0 draw.
However, there were no such problems for La Roja this time around. Lamine Yamal’s opener was followed by a Mikel Oyarzabal brace that put them firmly in control during the first half.
The rout was completed by Hassan Al Tambakti’s own-goal just after the break, with one of the tournament favourites now well in their stride.
In this article, we’ll cover:
Spain make a statement
Though still early days in this tournament, Spain already had a point to prove in their second Group H outing.
Despite 27 shots and 734 passes, they failed to break down debutants Cape Verde, with 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha proving a thorn in La Roja’s side.
It meant they had failed to win any of their last four World Cup matches, and had gone 284 minutes without scoring at the finals.
De la Fuente made four changes and one of them eased their nerves, with Yamal in the right place to break Spain’s duck.
Oyarzabal’s quickfire brace made his side the first to score three goals in the opening 25 minutes of a World Cup game since Germany’s 7-1 rout of Brazil in that 2014 semi-final.
At that moment, it looked like Spain could well match that scoreline, though they could only add to it courtesy of an own-goal during the second half.
Nevertheless, it was a commanding and morale-boosting display for the European champions, who registered 22 shots and 67.1% of possession, while they carefully managed the minutes of the likes of Yamal, Oyarzabal and Nico Williams.
Yamal arrives on the world stage
Following his cameo off the bench against Cape Verde, Yamal was handed his first start by De la Fuente, who continues to manage his minutes very carefully.
The Barcelona winger became the first player in history aged 18 or younger to start a match at both the European Championship and World Cup.
And it didn’t take him long to make his mark. Following a couple of positive bursts, he arrived at the far post to turn in Oyarzabal’s low cross in the 10th minute.
The second teenager to score for Spain at the World Cup – aged 18 years and 343 days – the only other player aged 18 or under to open the scoring in a match at the finals was a certain Pele against Wales back in 1958.
Yamal was wisely withdrawn at half-time with the damage already done, and Spain remain unbeaten in all 22 matches he has started for his country (W16 D6).
Oyarzabal back in the goals
While Spain had a point to prove as a collective, Oyarzabal was one of the players whose performance against Cape Verde came under the spotlight.
The Real Sociedad forward became the first man to play the first 30 minutes of a World Cup match without touching the ball once.
Fast forward six days, though, and by that point against Saudi Arabia, he had two goals and an assist to his name. He is only the second player to achieve that feat in the opening 25 minutes of a game at the finals.
After his inviting cross was turned in by Yamal, Oyarzabal was in the right place to apply the finishing touch twice in the space of four minutes.
Now joint-seventh on his nation’s all-time list – matching Fernando Morientes on 27 goals – he went close to completing a hat-trick before his half-time withdrawal, clipping the crossbar with a dinked effort.
That’s 10 goals in his last eight caps for Spain, and 21 direct involvements since the start of 2025 (14 goals, seven assists) – the joint-most at international level by any European player, matching a certain Erling Haaland.
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