ATLANTA, June 22 — Inspired by Lamine Yamal, Spain cruised to a 4-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in their FIFA World Cup 2026 Group H match early this morning, with Mikel Oyarzabal scoring twice as the European champions bounced back from an underwhelming tournament opener.
Yamal opened the scoring in the 10th minute, while Oyarzabal struck twice in quick succession as Spain effectively settled the contest before halftime.
An own goal shortly after the restart completed the rout, allowing coach Luis de la Fuente to make changes and rest key players.
“Every match is different even if the game plan is similar,” De la Fuente said.
“We analysed the previous match and all agreed that we needed more verticality to play deeper. We saw that today and, from the first minute, we were trying to suffocate the opponent.”
De la Fuente celebrated his 65th birthday in style as Yamal, whose only football in the previous two months came as a substitute appearance against Cape Verde, injected life into the Spanish attack.
A huge cheer greeted Yamal’s first touch as he twisted past his marker before delivering a dangerous cross that was cleared by Abdulelah Alamri, who scored Saudi Arabia’s goal in their 1-1 draw with Uruguay.
Spain’s opener came when Oyarzabal sent an inviting ball across the penalty area and Yamal slid in at the far post to score his first World Cup goal.
The breakthrough settled Spain after their frustrating goalless draw against Cape Verde, and they soon began carving open the Saudi defence.
Their second goal came from a corner after Dani Olmo returned the ball into the danger area, with the Saudi defence unable to clear. Aymeric Laporte nodded the ball down for Oyarzabal to bundle home from close range.
Three minutes later, Spain struck again with a flowing move. Pedro Porro floated a pass into the area and the ball remained airborne until it reached the net.
Marc Cucurella’s hooked pass found Olmo, who headed into the six-yard box for Oyarzabal to volley in his second goal of the match.
The striker, who scored six goals in Spain’s six qualifying matches, nearly completed his hat-trick when a shot from a tight angle crashed against the crossbar.
“We’re so happy to have turned things around,” Oyarzabal said.
“I didn’t have that many touches of the ball in the last game or such a good performance.
“I wouldn’t say I’m trying to prove myself because I’ve always felt appreciated and valued by the people whose opinion matters most to me — my teammates, the coach and everyone we work with.”
Second-half stroll
Spain replaced both Yamal and Oyarzabal at the break but continued to dominate.
Shortly after the restart, Saudi goalkeeper Nawaf Alaqidi blocked a volley from Cucurella following a corner, only for the rebound to ricochet off defender Hassan Altambakti and into the net for an own goal.
Spain continued to create opportunities but eased off the intensity as the match progressed, comfortably seeing out the result.
The victory moved Spain onto four points from two matches, while Saudi Arabia remained on one point.
