Los Angeles [US], July 3 (ANI): Mikel Oyarzabal has etched his name permanently into Spanish football folklore following his masterclass performance against Austria at SoFi Stadium. By netting a brilliant brace in the 3-0 victory, the Real Sociedad forward became the first player in the history of the Spanish men’s national team to score two or more goals in two different matches of the same FIFA World Cup.
While Spain has historically boasted legendary forwards like David Villa, Raul Gonzalez, and Fernando Torres, none managed to register multiple multi-goal games within a single World Cup tournament cycle. Oyarzabal’s clinical finishing in North America has officially broken that barrier.
Oyarzabal’s historic achievement caps off a sensational individual run in the tournament, characterised by elite positioning and ice-cold composure in front of the net.
According to statistics from Opta Jose, Oyarzabal, who previously netted a brace against Saudi Arabia in the group stage, has become the first Spanish player ever to score two or more goals in two different matches at the same World Cup.
Oyarzabal first set the tournament alight during Spain’s second Group H fixture against Saudi Arabia. Coming alive in the final third, he netted two clinical goals to spearhead a dominant 4-0 victory, kickstarting Spain’s momentum after an opening-day draw.
In the Round of 32 clash against Austria, he duplicated the feat. He opened the scoring in the 36th minute by latching onto a sharp pass from Marc Cucurella. Then, in the 89th minute, he put the final exclamation point on the match, finishing off a fluid team move to seal the 3-0 win and cement his place in the record books.
Even during Spain’s historic 2010 World Cup victory in South Africa, top scorer David Villa netted five goals but spread them out across five individual matches (including one brace against Honduras).
Oyarzabal’s ability to turn games into multi-goal routs gives manager Luis de la Fuente a lethal weapon heading into the later stages of the competition.
Luis de la Fuente’s men had to show immense patience against a highly disciplined Austrian defensive block under Ralf Rangnick. Starlet Lamine Yamal and veteran Aymeric Laporte threatened early, while defender Marc Cucurella had an early goal disallowed after a contentious refereeing decision ruled he had fouled Austrian goalkeeper Alexander Schlager.
However, the relentless Spanish pressure finally broke through before the interval. Cucurella in the 36th minute, turned provider, sending an inviting cross into the box for Oyarzabal to calmly slot home from close range.
Alex Baena rattled the crossbar with a brilliant free-kick before halftime; right-back Pedro Porro doubled Spain’s advantage after the restart, thumping home a perfectly timed header from a Baena cross to record his first-ever international goal.
In the dying minutes of the match, Cucurella delivered another precise assist, allowing Oyarzabal to fire home his second of the night and seal his historic milestone.
The statistical fallout from the match highlights a historic resurgence for the three-time European champions, breaking multiple long-standing tournament records. This marks Spain’s first World Cup knockout stage victory since defeating the Netherlands in the 2010 Final. It is also the first time they have scored more than once in a knockout match since 1994.
Goalkeeper Unai Simon extended his personal shutout streak to 519 minutes, officially surpassing Italian legend Walter Zenga’s iconic 1990 record of 517 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal.
Spain has now kept five consecutive World Cup clean sheets, stretching their overall tournament shutout streak to 595 minutes.
Austria failed to register a single shot on target. Spain is the first team to achieve this defensive feat in a World Cup knockout match since Germany shut down Argentina in the 2014 Final.
The comprehensive victory also preserved manager Luis de la Fuente’s astonishing unblemished record at major international tournaments. Under his guidance, La Roja have now won 10 and drawn one of their 11 matches across the UEFA European Championship and the FIFA World Cup.
Only legendary tacticians Aime Jacquet and Louis van Gaal have enjoyed longer unbeaten starts among European managers across the two premier international competitions. Spain now marches confidently into the Round of 16, where a blockbuster heavyweight clash against either Portugal or Croatia awaits them in Dallas. (ANI)
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