Lamine Yamal did not hesitate to admit that he saw himself as world champion. No one is as transparent in the Spain locker room to fire up rivals and, yet, when the semifinal ended in Dallas, he barely celebrated. As if it were just another day at the office. Lamine, Oyarzabal, somewhat more emotional Rodri and totally unleashed Pedro Porro, feel they have the football to achieve it, but one step remains.
In the semifinal, the prediction of the young star from Rocafonda came true. It hurt in France that he said that if there was a team that could accumulate fears in this knockout round, it was not Spain. And he was absolutely right. The cheers echoed in Dallas. “We did everything to stop a very difficult team. It is a dream come true but it is the whole team’s,” said Porro, one of the men of the night.
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Luis de la Fuente found it hard to assimilate. “What I feel must be something like the happiness and pride of a country. We have one more step to go and we will see if we achieve it. It is a great responsibility. Only the chosen ones go to the final,” warned the coach, who could only dream of this four years ago. “We came with an idea, to which we have been faithful and has brought us here. We have beaten one of the best teams in the world because we are the best team in the world,” concluded the man from La Rioja.
kick in the quadriceps
Spain appears indestructible in the knockout stages of major competitions, no matter who the opponent is. Since they fell in the round of 16 against Morocco in Qatar in the penalty shootout, Spain has not given in. They have left eight teams behind consecutively to reach the World Cup final and win the European Championship. They will face the ninth on Sunday to achieve the second star 16 years later.
The reasons why Les Bleus cannot get a hold of them were seen very early. Exactly at 20 minutes. After more than a hundred passes, searching without despair for where to hurt and not allowing the rival to launch devastating counterattacks with their trio of devils, Mbappé, Olise and Dembélé, who were off target, Lamine Yamal appeared, the kid they have nightmares about. Two years ago it was in Munich, in another semifinal when, in the 21st minute, he cut inside on Rabiot and sent the ball to the top corner with a strike that became the goal of the European Championship. He was just days away from turning 17 then.
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On a much bigger stage, with all the eyes of world football watching him on the AT&T field in Dallas and now 19 years old, he pressured Digne who, to avoid surprises, tried to clear and what he did was kick him in the quadriceps, right where the number 19 shines. The Salvadoran Barton did not hesitate to point to the penalty spot. It was the 22nd minute, one after the one in which he amazed the world, when no one knew how to place Rocafonda on the map, the neighborhood now displayed on the band that holds his curls. In the second half, although offside, he again placed a ball in the top corner.
That penalty midway through the first half was converted into an advantage by Oyarzabal, the calmest man in the universe. It is the fifth goal of the Real captain in this World Cup and serves to enlarge his legend in the De la Fuente era: top scorer with 29 goals. The most effective false ‘9’ in the history of Spanish football, equaling the numbers of Butragueño and David Villa in World Cups. His numbers with Spain this season are brutal: 14 goals.
Olmo and Saliba’s injury
With the 0-1, France had to keep chasing the ball which, for many minutes, belonged less to Rodri, harassed by Olise, and more to Dani Olmo. Rabiot’s early yellow card, whom Deschamps substituted at halftime, gave the Catalan freedom to move and organize the team’s fluid attack. The ’10’ was also a protagonist in the duel two years ago with another goal that completed the comeback and led Spain to the title. Deschamps then faced another setback: Saliba’s injury. As happened in the round of 16 against Portugal with Nuno Mendes and in the quarterfinals with Courtois, Saliba, France’s best center-back, left injured at the half-hour mark. Another blow for the French.
The final blow was dealt by an unexpected protagonist: Pedro Porro. A gallop from the right-back to the edge of the box, a wall pass with the undetectable Dani Olmo, and enough confidence to chase his second goal in a World Cup. Spain, watched from the stands by champions Sergio Ramos, Xavi Hernández, Puyol and Casillas, will fight again for the World Cup.
