Spain routs Austria while still working to reach World Cup champion form

6 min Click here to listen to this article Share via Close extra sharing options Email Facebook X LinkedIn Threads Reddit WhatsApp Copy Link URL Copied! Print 0:00 0:00 1x This is read by an automated voice. Please report any issues or inconsistencies here. See more from the L.A. Times in Google Search. Set us as preferred Spain achieved its primary goal at SoFi Stadium on Thursday, defeating Austria 3-0 and advancing to the World Cup round of 16 in front of a pro-Spain announced crowd of 70,492. The Spaniards extended their unbeaten match streak to 34 games and their win streak over European teams to 35 dating back to 2023. They have yet to concede a goal this tournament, tying the record for most consecutive men’s World Cup clean sheets with five. By every metric, Spain controlled the match and won decisively in its best performance of the tournament. Voices Swanson: Justice for U.S. star Folarin Balogun, red card for VAR Soccer’s video assistant referee system is worse than the NBA’s tedious in-game reviews. Worse than the existential NFL question of whether it is or is not a catch. But Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said his team still has room to improve and has yet to play its best soccer. The team favored to win the World Cup before matches kicked off last month is still ramping up and working to championship standards. While France’s fearsome foursome led by the electric Kylian Mbappé has bulldozed opponents, Norway’s Erling Haaland is scoring at a rapid pace and Lionel Messi is dancing his way to immortality, Spain superstar Lamine Yamal is still waiting to deliver a multi-goal dominant World Cup performance. Yamal, an 18-year-old prodigy, showed flashes of his talent and set up his teammates well en route to winning man of the match honors that more than a few Spanish media members questioned. But his efficient teammates carried the scoring load Thursday, with Mikel Oyarzabal scoring two goals and Pedro Porro adding another for La Roja. Spain has been managing Yamal’s minutes while he recovers from injury, but Thursday was supposed to be an opportunity to unleash his dominance. “I think we need to keep improving our game, our intensity — everything — but obviously we know the quality we have, and we know we’re not afraid of any team,” Yamal said after the match. “We’re Spain, and we have to prove it on the field, but we believe in ourselves.” Spain still advanced with ease and will face the winner of the Portugal-Croatia match to be played later Thursday. Their round of 16 match will be played Monday in Arlington, Texas. On July 10, the winner of that contest will face the winner of Monday’s U.S.-Belgium match at SoFi Stadium. Austria coach Ralf Rangnick is convinced Spain, the European champions, easily could become World Cup champions. “If you watched the game today, you would recognize it is really difficult to play against this opponent,” Rangnick said of Spain. “... I cannot remember any unforced error they made.” Spain’s de la Fuente shook his head when he heard Rangnick’s praise, saying he was happy for his players and loves his team but saw many areas that could be improved. “There’s much to do,” de la Fuente said, noting the competition will only grow tougher. “The defense can still be improved. There have been some situations when we lacked high pressure. ... Prior to the first hydration break, the team was still trying to evolve. ”... You need to keep improving all the time.” Spain forward Lamine Yamal falls after Austria midfielder Florian Grillitsch kicks the ball away from him during the second half Thursday. (Kelvin Kuo / Los Angeles Times) During its round of 32 match on Thursday, Spain handled Austria’s high press and attacked spaces behind the defense. The Spanish team capitalized on its opponent’s defensive misalignments, found depth down the wings and consistently exposed the Austrians’ defensive weaknesses. Austria came out quickly looking to pull off an upset, but it ran into a Spain team that was well-organized defensively. The counterattack ended with Yamal firing a shot straight at Austria goalkeeper Alex Schlager one minute into the game. The Austrians tried to get behind the Spanish defense, but their attacking creativity was limited and they never managed to turn their promising opportunities into goals. One of Austria’s clearest chances came on a play by Marcel Sabitzer, who sent a cross from the left flank to forward Michael Gregoritsch, who wasn’t fast enough to put a head or foot on the well-placed ball before it sailed out of bounds. The pace of the game favored Spain, as Austria took risks on the attack and left spaces open. In the 29th minute, Yamal’s corner kick pinballed in the penalty area before falling to Marc Cucurella, who appeared to score. The goal was erased, however, because Spain tackled Austria’s goalkeeper before Cucurella took his shot. Yamal was dynamic early and a run into the box nearly resulted in another clear scoring op

Spain routs Austria while still working to reach World Cup champion form

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Spain routs Austria while still working to reach World Cup champion form

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