FIFA World Cup 2026: Lamine Yamal Scores On Return As Spain Rout Saudi Arabia 4-0
Lamine Yamal marked his return to Spain’s starting line-up with his first World Cup goal, as the former champions thrashed Saudi Arabia 4-0 in Atlanta on Sunday (June 21). It was the teenager’s first start in two months, and he made it count, while Mikel Oyarzabal added a brace to put Spain firmly in control of Group H.
The result was a stark turnaround from Spain’s tournament opener, a scoreless draw against debutants Cape Verde. This time, coach Luis de la Fuente’s side looked unstoppable from the outset. Hassan al-Tambakti’s own goal after the break completed the scoring, taking Spain to 4-0.
De la Fuente made four changes to his starting XI for the match, bringing in Yamal, Pedro Porro, Dani Olmo and Alex Baena. The breakthrough goal also ended a lengthy barren run in front of goal for Spain the side had managed over 2,500 passes and 50 attempts on target since their last World Cup goal before Yamal finally found the net.
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Oyarzabal created the opening goal himself, finding space behind the Saudi defence before squaring a low cross for Yamal to tap in at the back post.
Saudi Arabia had held Uruguay to a 1-1 draw in their own opening match, but Sunday’s performance offered little proof that heavy investment in the country’s domestic league has translated into improvement at the national-team level. Saudi coach Georgios Donis appeared particularly frustrated that two of Spain’s goals originated from corners.
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Oyarzabal opened the scoring himself by pouncing on a flick-on from Aymeric Laporte. Three minutes later, he doubled Spain’s lead with a volley off Dani Olmo’s header his 14th international goal in his last 13 caps. He came close to a first-half hat-trick soon after, but an audacious effort with the outside of his foot from a tight angle struck the crossbar.
With the contest effectively settled by half-time, De la Fuente withdrew both Yamal and Oyarzabal at the break. The substitutions did little to slow Spain’s attacking momentum, and the fourth goal, like two of the earlier ones, came from a corner. Marc Cucurella was given space to shoot, and though his effort was saved by Mohammed al-Owais, the rebound deflected in off Tambakti for an own goal.
(With inputs from AFP)