Spain's teenage sensation Lamine Yamal etched his name into World Cup history on Sunday, scoring his first goal in the tournament and joining an exclusive club that includes Lionel Messi and Pele. The 18-year-old opened the scoring for Spain in their Group stage match against Saudi Arabia at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium, helping his side to a 3-0 lead by halftime.
Yamal's historic goal
Yamal found the net in the 11th minute, becoming the second youngest player to score for Spain in a World Cup match. According to ESPN, Yamal was 18 years and 343 days old at the time of his goal—just 14 days younger than Messi when he scored his first World Cup goal for Argentina in 2006 (18 years and 357 days). Opta also noted that Yamal is only the second player in World Cup history aged 18 or younger to open the scoring for his country, matching a feat previously achieved by a 17-year-old Pele for Brazil against Wales in 1958.
Spain's unbeaten run with Yamal
Yamal's presence in the starting lineup continues to be a good omen for Spain. According to Opta, Spain has never lost a match in which Yamal has started, boasting a record of 15 wins and six draws in 21 such matches. During those games, Spain has scored 60 goals, with Yamal contributing 16 goal involvements (five goals and 11 assists).
Match summary
Spain dominated the first half against Saudi Arabia, with Mikel Oyarzabal adding a brace after Yamal's opener to make it 3-0 at the break. The match marked Spain's second group-stage outing after a frustrating 0-0 draw against debutants Cape Verde in their opening match. Spain's lineup featured Unai Simon in goal, a defensive line of Pedro Porro, Pau Cubarsi, Aymeric Laporte, and Marc Cucurella, a midfield of Rodri, Dani Olmo, and Pedri, and a forward trio of Yamal, Alex Baena, and Oyarzabal. Saudi Arabia started with Mohammed Alowais in goal and a lineup including Ali Lajami, Abdulelah Alamri, Hassan Altambakti, Saud Abdulhamid, Moteb Alharbi, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Musab Aljuwayr, Abdullah Alkhaibari, Feras Albrikan, and Salem Al-Dawsari.
