Pedro Porro didn’t want to hear about his own goal. He wanted to talk about everyone else.
Spain knocked off France 2-0 on Tuesday to punch their ticket to the World Cup Final, and the right back who scored the second goal made it clear that this was not about him. Not even close.
“Well, it’s a dream come true,” Porro said through an interpreter. “I couldn’t even dream of this. I’m so happy because of the team’s attitude from beginning to end. I think that we did such an amazing game. We gave it our all in order just to go through to the final. We knew they were a very tough team that were doing things really well. And this is our team. It’s not about me.”
How Spain shut down Mbappe
The plan coming in was simple on paper but brutal in execution. Contain Kylian Mbappe without selling out the rest of the defense. France came in as one of the deepest teams in the tournament, but Spain held them scoreless for 90 minutes. Porro, starting at right back, had to deal with Mbappe cutting inside from the left for large stretches of the match. The French superstar finished with zero goals and only a handful of threatening moments.
Porro’s 58th-minute goal put the game out of reach. He pushed forward on a counter, got a perfectly timed pass, and slotted it past the French keeper. But in his postgame comments, he steered every bit of credit back to the group. The tone was almost dismissive of the idea that he deserved individual praise.
What this means for Spain
Spain is back in a World Cup Final for the first time in over a decade. They’ve looked vulnerable at points in this tournament, but the semifinal performance showed something different. Discipline. Organization. No panic when France pushed numbers forward late in the second half. The final will be a different animal, but this team has a defense that can lock down elite attackers. And now they’ve proven it against the best.
More details on the final opponent and schedule are expected in the coming hours. What’s already clear is that Spain’s players don’t care who gets the credit. That might be the scariest thing for whoever lines up against them next.
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