Teenage star Lamine Yamal scored the opening goal in his first World Cup start, Mikel Oyarzabal added a first-half brace, and Spain eased to a 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia in Sunday’s Group H clash in Atlanta.
Oyarzabal also provided the assist on Yamal’s opener as Spain (1-0-1, 4 points) rebounded from its shock 0-0 draw against Cape Verde to open the tournament.
Marc Cucurella’s volley forced a Saudi own-goal shortly after halftime to complete the scoring as the Spaniards extended their unbeaten run in competitive fixtures to 33 matches.
With Cape Verde rallying for a draw against Uruguay in Sunday’s other Group H match, Spain can win the group if they beat Uruguay in the group finale in Zapopan, Mexico, on Friday.
That would potentially mean avoiding a round-of-32 match with Argentina, and possibly set up a quarterfinal with the co-host United States if both teams progress that far.
Saudi Arabia (0-1-1, 1 point) can still finish at least third in their group and potentially reach the knockout phase with a win in their group finale against Cape Verde.
Yamal and Oyarzabal were both removed at halftime by manager Luis de la Fuente, though neither appeared to pick up an injury.
The 18-year-old Yamal had played only the final 20 minutes against Cape Verde as he continues regaining fitness after suffering a torn hamstring that ended his club season with FC Barcelona in April.
He needed only 10 minutes to become the eighth player age 18 or younger to score a World Cup goal and the youngest to score an opening goal in a match since a 17-year-old Pele did in 1958 in Sweden.
Oyarzabal got down the left and played a low cross that split the difference between goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais and his back line, and Yamal met it at the back post with a one-time finish.
The 29-year-old Oyarzabal added his first two World Cup goals in his second career appearance in the tournament during a four-minute stretch.
In the 21st minute, he cleaned up the second phase of a corner kick from close range. In the 24th, he tapped in a volley at the back post to finish off Dani Olmo’s header across the box. (Reuters)
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