|
Spain defeated France 2-0 in the FIFA World Cup semi-final in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday (local time), extending their winning streak against Les Bleus to three matches after victories in the UEFA Euro 2024 semi-finals and the 2025 UEFA Nations League semi-finals.Spain players celebrating (Photo: X/@SEFutbol)
Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the first half after Lamine Yamal was brought down inside the box. Pedro Porro doubled Spain''s lead early in the second half, sealing their place in the World Cup final, where they will face either England or Argentina on July 19 in East Rutherford. Mikel Oyarzabal has scored 18 goals in his last 20 games for Spain. His penalty made him the sixth man to reach 30 goals for Spain after David Silva (35), Alvaro Morata (37), Fernando Torres (38), Raul (44) and David Villa (59), according to the FIFA Website. Pedro Porro of Spain was named Player of the Match. France suffered an early setback when central defender William Saliba was forced off with a back injury midway through the first half and was replaced by Maxence Lacroix. Spain dominated possession and kept France''s attacking trio of Michael Olise, Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele largely quiet to take a 1-0 lead into the interval. France also had history against them, with only Argentina (against Italy in 1990) and Croatia (against England in 2018) having previously recovered from a halftime deficit to win a World Cup semifinal. Head coach Didier Deschamps introduced Manu Kone for Adrien Rabiot at the break and later brought on Desire Doue for Bradley Barcola in an attempt to change the momentum. However, Spain maintained control through relentless pressing and crucial saves from goalkeeper Unai Simon. Porro then finished off a flowing attacking move to score Spain''s second goal, effectively putting the contest beyond France''s reach. With the victory, Spain equalled Italy''s record of 37 consecutive matches unbeaten and advanced to only their second FIFA World Cup final. (ANI)
|
