ATLANTA: Lamine Yamal etched his name into FIFA World Cup history on Sunday after becoming one of the youngest goalscorers ever as Spain cruised to a dominant 4-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in their Group H clash at Atlanta Stadium.
The 18-year-old Barcelona sensation, who had featured for only 25 minutes in Spain’s goalless draw against Cape Verde earlier in the week, was handed a place in Luis de la Fuente’s starting XI and repaid his coach’s faith almost immediately.
Yamal opened the scoring in the 10th minute, finishing off a flowing counterattack initiated after a Saudi goal kick.
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Mikel Oyarzabal found space on the left side of the penalty area before squaring the ball across goal, where Yamal slid in to squeeze his effort past goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais for his maiden World Cup goal.
The strike saw Yamal enter the list of the youngest scorers in World Cup history and move ahead of Lionel Messi, becoming the eighth-youngest player to score at the tournament at the age of 18 years and 343 days.
Youngest World Cup goalscorers
- Pelé – 17 years, 239 days
- Manuel Rosas – 18 years, 93 days
- Gavi – 18 years, 110 days
- Ibrahim Mbaye – 18 years, 142 days
- Michael Owen – 18 years, 190 days
- Nicolae Kovacs – 18 years, 197 days
- Dmitri Sychev – 18 years, 231 days
- Lamine Yamal – 18 years, 343 days
- Lionel Messi – 18 years, 357 days
- Julian Green – 19 years, 25 days
Spain doubled their advantage just 10 minutes later, with Oyarzabal getting on the scoresheet. Aymeric Laporte’s pass found the Real Sociedad forward lurking inside the area, and he calmly poked the ball beyond Al-Owais.
Oyarzabal completed his brace three minutes later after another Spanish attack from the right flank ended with the ball being played back into his path, allowing him to finish from close range and give La Roja a commanding 3-0 lead before halftime.
Having virtually sealed the contest in the opening period, De la Fuente withdrew both Yamal and Oyarzabal after the break, but Spain’s relentless pressure continued.
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Their fourth goal arrived early in the second half. Al-Owais denied Marc Cucurella’s powerful effort, but the rebound ricocheted off Saudi defender Hassan Al Tambakti and into the net for an unfortunate own goal.
The result leaves Saudi Arabia needing a victory over Cape Verde in their final group match to keep alive hopes of reaching the knockout rounds for the first time since 1994.
Spain, meanwhile, will head to Guadalajara for a heavyweight clash against two-time champions Uruguay, with top spot in Group H potentially at stake.
READ: Cape Verde hold Uruguay to shock 2-2 draw at FIFA World Cup 2026
