Spain needed a spark. After a frustrating 0-0 draw with Cabo Verde to open Group H, the pressure was on. Ten minutes into Sunday’s match against Saudi Arabia, Lamine Yamal provided it.
The 18-year-old Barcelona winger collected a perfect pass inside the box and buried his first-ever World Cup goal. The stadium erupted. Online clips of the finish spread fast. It was the kind of moment that reminds you why people watch this tournament in the first place.
Spain went on to win 4-0, a dominant performance that flipped the group standings. Where they sat in third after the opener, they now sit at the top with three points and a healthy goal difference. For a team that entered the World Cup as one of the betting favorites, that 0-0 tie to Cabo Verde felt like a stumble. Sunday felt like a correction.
The Messi comparisons are already here
It comes with the territory when you’re a teenage Spanish winger who plays with flair and confidence. Yamal has drawn comparisons to Lionel Messi since his breakout at Barcelona. Those comparisons only get louder when he scores on the World Cup stage.
Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente is not here for it. At least not yet.
“It would be a mistake to compare him to anyone,” De la Fuente said Saturday, according to ESPN. “He’s 18, in a process of development, of maturing. We have to let him follow his path.”
He went further, comparing Yamal’s talent to artists like Salvador Dali or Michelangelo. “These kinds of players, who have something different, are ready for it. They’re geniuses. What seems exceptional to us isn’t for them.”
That’s a hell of a quote. But it also carries a warning. Yamal is still a teenager. He’s going to have bad games. The question is how he handles them, not just the highlights.
What comes next for Spain
Spain’s next group match is Friday against Uruguay. Win that, and they’ll almost certainly lock up a spot in the knockout rounds. With Yamal looking confident and the team clicking against Saudi Arabia, the trajectory feels different than it did a few days ago.
But that’s the World Cup. One game changes everything. Yamal got his first goal in ten minutes. Now everyone wants to see what he does with the next ninety.
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