If the Bourbons will never forget July 14, 1789, the beginning of the end, the blues will also not be able to put aside what happened on another July 14, 237 years after the storming of the Bastille. Without needing to behead anyone, applying a plan designed and executed with the precision of a Swiss watch, Spain ruined the neighboring country’s national celebration with a display of competitiveness that took them to the World Cup final. World Cup final, three simple words whose symbolism transcends any dictionary.
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The Spanish national team gave themselves the chance to sew their second star on their chest next Sunday in New Jersey by once again minimizing France, who roamed the tournament with the airs of a champion but collided violently with reality. That of an unrelenting Spain, which has sent them home in the semifinals in three consecutive tournaments.
With two old-school coaches on the benches, there was not much room for experiments on the pitch. The match went into the oven and it took a while to heat up. Barely a run from Barcola on one side or a forced foul by Lamine Yamal on the other. Simple flashes compared to the potential of what could happen in Dallas with two teams of such stature. Idolized by the crowd, shouting every time he touched the ball, which was not often, Mbappé launched his first run to try to stretch his team but there was no way. And Deschamps had taken on a Flick-like face, pushing the defensive line very far forward. The French were not afraid of anyone, perhaps aware that of the two bullets that knocked them down in the Eurocup, they only had one left in front of them. They were wrong.
Spain will play the second World Cup final in its entire history
Spain landed calmly in the match, but very focused. Especially the two central defenders, who had to multiply their attention every time there was a loss so that the French beasts would not eat up the spaces. Both were stellar, Laporte showed a special superiority, who knows if more motivated than ever before the country that saw him born.
The semifinal started to gain color just before the absurd hydration break, especially in a stadium that had the air conditioning running at full blast. A run by Cucurella on the left ended with a crossed pass that Digne tried to control with his head without much success, and when he went to clear, Lamine burst in between his foot and the ball. Penalty. The specialist Oyarzabal took the ball and with his left foot number 47 he smashed it into the net with a powerful cross shot. Spain had crossed the first barrier, sometimes the most difficult, and also, France lost Saliba to injury right after, one of their defensive pillars.
The goal did not revolutionize the afternoon too much but it did push both teams to look a little more towards the goal. It was not easy to find gaps in attack so it was a matter of long shots. Barcola and Porro left their mark without much accuracy. The best play of the first half, pure magic, had a Spanish color, with Lamine and Olmo connecting at the edge of the area and Lacroix preventing Fabián’s goal. Quite timid until then, Mbappé tried to equalize the forces with his formidable power but he ran into a very alert Unai Simón, who got ahead of him when the AT&T Stadium was on the verge of a heart attack.
After flirting a couple of times with the second yellow card, Rabiot did not come out after the break. Deschamps did not see it clear, as he could not find a way to hurt the best defense of the World Cup. There were fewer obstacles in De la Fuente’s vision, whom Lamine and Oyarzábal reinforced with two good attempts against Maignan. Things looked good for Spain, who soon uncorked the second bottle of champagne. Porro connected with Olmo – whose performance deserved the applause of the crowd – and he, before receiving a good shove, managed to return the ball in the area so that the Extremaduran surprised Maignan at the near post. The Spanish ranks exploded with euphoria, increasingly seeing themselves closer to the long-awaited World Cup final.
Olise had long gone to the bench, Mbappé was fighting on his own, and Dembélé was missing, barely two shots already in added time. De la Fuente’s plan had worked perfectly and had been executed masterfully. The Bastille had been taken. The revolution was Spanish. World Cup final, what three words.
Technical sheet
2 – Spain: Unai Simón; Pedro Porro (Marcos Llorente, 84′), Cubarsí, Laporte, Cucurella; Rodri, Fabián (Pedri, 78′), Dani Olmo (Mikel Merino, 78′); Lamine Yamal, Oyarzabal (Ferran Torres, 74′) and Álex Baena (Nico Williams, 84′).
Coach: Luis de la Fuente.
Goals: 0-1: 22′: Oyarzabal (pen). 0-2: 58′: Pedro Porro
Referee: Iván Barton (El Salvador). Booked the French Rabiot and Mbappé and the Spanish Cucurella.
Incidents: 2026 World Cup semifinal played at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington before 70,176 spectators. Before the match, a minute of silence was held in memory of the victims of the Nice attack, which marks its tenth anniversary, and of former Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, who was Emir of Qatar from 1995 until his abdication in 2013.
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