According to reports from Los Angeles, Spain secured their ticket to the 2026 World Cup semifinals in a dramatic fashion at the ultra-modern SoFi Stadium. Luis de la Fuente made a crucial strategic gamble by bringing on late-game specialist Mikel Merino in the closing minutes against Belgium. The substitute responded perfectly in the 88th minute, capitalizing on a handling error by Belgian goalkeeper Senne Lammens after a powerful long-range strike from Pau Cubarsi to break a tense 1-1 deadlock.
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Subscribe Sekarang →The highly anticipated encounter began with Spain dominating possession and finding their rhythm. The breakthrough arrived when Fabian Ruiz, chosen to start ahead of Pedri, found the back of the net after Thibaut Courtois partially blocked an initial effort from Dani Olmo. However, Belgium fought back valiantly under the leadership of head coach Rudi Garcia. In the 41st minute, Charles De Ketelaere capitalized on a precise cross from Timothy Castagne, heading home the equalizer and breaking Spain's historic streak of six consecutive World Cup clean sheets.
Based on post-match assessments, Belgium faced a mountain of physical adversities during the clash. Already missing Youri Tielemans due to a pre-game warm-up injury, the Diables Rouges lost superstar Kevin De Bruyne to exhaustion late in the match, while veteran goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois had to be replaced by Manchester United custodian Senne Lammens following a muscular injury. Despite the setback, Rudi Garcia expressed immense pride, stating, "We showed that Belgium was a great nation in this World Cup. It stops today, but we must accept it."
Following the dramatic victory, Spain will now face France in a blockbuster semifinal next Tuesday. Looking ahead to the monumental matchup, young Barcelona star Lamine Yamal expressed immense confidence during his post-game television interview, stating, "If they have to be afraid of anyone, it is us, we eliminated them at the Euro. We are two great teams, in my opinion the best, but we have no fear."
From editorial monitoring, the Spanish national team appears to be peaking physically at the right time, with key substitutes consistently determining outcomes. Meanwhile, the observation from the French camp in Boston indicates that Les Bleus" coaching staff spent their rest day analyzing this intense encounter to fully dissect the tactical setups of their upcoming Iberian opponents.