by Craig Laycock
Original article:
Spain 1 - 0 Argentina
Ferran Torres (106' ET)
As ever with major tournament finals, what promised to be a spectacle ended up being a tense battle of the wills as Spain’s superior possession and attack was only partly dulled by Argentina, before their dominance finally paid off.
Argentina set out to stop Spain first and foremost, and it’s abundantly clear in the stats. Argentina’s xG was 0.00 in the first 90 minutes and it took them until deep in extra time, and already a goal down, before they mustered one at all.
This was Donald Trump’s first game at the 2026 World Cup, and he probably could have picked a better one, such as last night’s pulsating 6-4 win for England over France, because this one offered little to no actual entertainment value.
Spain proved a constant, patient threat and only looked threatened themselves by the disruption caused by a succession of fouls by Argentina, culminating in a second yellow card for Enzo Fernandez in the 93rd minute. That easily could have been a straight red as there seemed to be no intent to get the ball.
The referee seemed to set the tone early on by letting challenges from Argentina fly in, and Spain complained on many occasions to the referee about the lack of protection his leniency was allowing.
In the first half, Lamine Yamal, who was lively throughout, forced a save from Emi Martinez, as did Mikel Oyarzabal. Then, in the 93rd minute after it looked like Argentina were looking for extra time and penalties, Enzo Fernandez had a moment of madness with a reckless challenge that sent the excellent Pau Cubarsi tumbling through the air.
Fernandez looked on in disbelief as he was shown the red, but he must have been the only person in the stadium who didn’t see it coming. With Fernandez given his marching orders, Argentina looked increasingly fragile going into extra time.
Spain took advantage, and Ferran Torres joined the ranks of World Cup winning goal scorers after picking up a header from Nico Williams and smashing home from point blank in the 106th minute. It could have been more, with Williams seeing a goal ruled out due to a foul in the build up.
In the end, football won and Spain’s victory through positive means would certainly be better welcomed by the world at large than Argentina’s attempts at anti-football.
After the final whistle blew, Argentina’s players couldn’t control their emotions and lashed out at the Spaniards, with what seemed to be full on punches in some cases. But in terms of heavyweight clashes, this one was dominated by Spain.
6 min read
Final: Patient Spain triumph over dour Argentina
Spain deservedly earn their second star.
6 min read
Spain 1 - 0 Argentina
Ferran Torres (106' ET)
As ever with major tournament finals, what promised to be a spectacle ended up being a tense battle of the wills as Spain’s superior possession and attack was only partly dulled by Argentina, before their dominance finally paid off.
Argentina set out to stop Spain first and foremost, and it’s abundantly clear in the stats. Argentina’s xG was 0.00 in the first 90 minutes and it took them until deep in extra time, and already a goal down, before they mustered one at all.
This was Donald Trump’s first game at the 2026 World Cup, and he probably could have picked a better one, such as last night’s pulsating 6-4 win for England over France, because this one offered little to no actual entertainment value.
Spain proved a constant, patient threat and only looked threatened themselves by the disruption caused by a succession of fouls by Argentina, culminating in a second yellow card for Enzo Fernandez in the 93rd minute. That easily could have been a straight red as there seemed to be no intent to get the ball.
The referee seemed to set the tone early on by letting challenges from Argentina fly in, and Spain complained on many occasions to the referee about the lack of protection his leniency was allowing.
In the first half, Lamine Yamal, who was lively throughout, forced a save from Emi Martinez, as did Mikel Oyarzabal. Then, in the 93rd minute after it looked like Argentina were looking for extra time and penalties, Enzo Fernandez had a moment of madness with a reckless challenge that sent the excellent Pau Cubarsi tumbling through the air.
Fernandez looked on in disbelief as he was shown the red, but he must have been the only person in the stadium who didn’t see it coming. With Fernandez given his marching orders, Argentina looked increasingly fragile going into extra time.
Spain took advantage, and Ferran Torres joined the ranks of World Cup winning goal scorers after picking up a header from Nico Williams and smashing home from point blank in the 106th minute. It could have been more, with Williams seeing a goal ruled out due to a foul in the build up.
In the end, football won and Spain’s victory through positive means would certainly be better welcomed by the world at large than Argentina’s attempts at anti-football.
After the final whistle blew, Argentina’s players couldn’t control their emotions and lashed out at the Spaniards, with what seemed to be full on punches in some cases. But in terms of heavyweight clashes, this one was dominated by Spain.
Final: Patient Spain triumph over dour Argentina
Spain deservedly earn their second star.
Original article:
Spain 1 - 0 Argentina
Ferran Torres (106' ET)
As ever with major tournament finals, what promised to be a spectacle ended up being a tense battle of the wills as Spain’s superior possession and attack was only partly dulled by Argentina, before their dominance finally paid off.
Argentina set out to stop Spain first and foremost, and it’s abundantly clear in the stats. Argentina’s xG was 0.00 in the first 90 minutes and it took them until deep in extra time, and already a goal down, before they mustered one at all.
This was Donald Trump’s first game at the 2026 World Cup, and he probably could have picked a better one, such as last night’s pulsating 6-4 win for England over France, because this one offered little to no actual entertainment value.
Spain proved a constant, patient threat and only looked threatened themselves by the disruption caused by a succession of fouls by Argentina, culminating in a second yellow card for Enzo Fernandez in the 93rd minute. That easily could have been a straight red as there seemed to be no intent to get the ball.
The referee seemed to set the tone early on by letting challenges from Argentina fly in, and Spain complained on many occasions to the referee about the lack of protection his leniency was allowing.
In the first half, Lamine Yamal, who was lively throughout, forced a save from Emi Martinez, as did Mikel Oyarzabal. Then, in the 93rd minute after it looked like Argentina were looking for extra time and penalties, Enzo Fernandez had a moment of madness with a reckless challenge that sent the excellent Pau Cubarsi tumbling through the air.
Fernandez looked on in disbelief as he was shown the red, but he must have been the only person in the stadium who didn’t see it coming. With Fernandez given his marching orders, Argentina looked increasingly fragile going into extra time.
Spain took advantage, and Ferran Torres joined the ranks of World Cup winning goal scorers after picking up a header from Nico Williams and smashing home from point blank in the 106th minute. It could have been more, with Williams seeing a goal ruled out due to a foul in the build up.
In the end, football won and Spain’s victory through positive means would certainly be better welcomed by the world at large than Argentina’s attempts at anti-football.
After the final whistle blew, Argentina’s players couldn’t control their emotions and lashed out at the Spaniards, with what seemed to be full on punches in some cases. But in terms of heavyweight clashes, this one was dominated by Spain.
6 min read
Final: Patient Spain triumph over dour Argentina
Spain deservedly earn their second star.
Spain 1 - 0 Argentina
Ferran Torres (106' ET)
As ever with major tournament finals, what promised to be a spectacle ended up being a tense battle of the wills as Spain’s superior possession and attack was only partly dulled by Argentina, before their dominance finally paid off.
Argentina set out to stop Spain first and foremost, and it’s abundantly clear in the stats. Argentina’s xG was 0.00 in the first 90 minutes and it took them until deep in extra time, and already a goal down, before they mustered one at all.
This was Donald Trump’s first game at the 2026 World Cup, and he probably could have picked a better one, such as last night’s pulsating 6-4 win for England over France, because this one offered little to no actual entertainment value.
Spain proved a constant, patient threat and only looked threatened themselves by the disruption caused by a succession of fouls by Argentina, culminating in a second yellow card for Enzo Fernandez in the 93rd minute. That easily could have been a straight red as there seemed to be no intent to get the ball.
The referee seemed to set the tone early on by letting challenges from Argentina fly in, and Spain complained on many occasions to the referee about the lack of protection his leniency was allowing.
In the first half, Lamine Yamal, who was lively throughout, forced a save from Emi Martinez, as did Mikel Oyarzabal. Then, in the 93rd minute after it looked like Argentina were looking for extra time and penalties, Enzo Fernandez had a moment of madness with a reckless challenge that sent the excellent Pau Cubarsi tumbling through the air.
Fernandez looked on in disbelief as he was shown the red, but he must have been the only person in the stadium who didn’t see it coming. With Fernandez given his marching orders, Argentina looked increasingly fragile going into extra time.
Spain took advantage, and Ferran Torres joined the ranks of World Cup winning goal scorers after picking up a header from Nico Williams and smashing home from point blank in the 106th minute. It could have been more, with Williams seeing a goal ruled out due to a foul in the build up.
In the end, football won and Spain’s victory through positive means would certainly be better welcomed by the world at large than Argentina’s attempts at anti-football.
After the final whistle blew, Argentina’s players couldn’t control their emotions and lashed out at the Spaniards, with what seemed to be full on punches in some cases. But in terms of heavyweight clashes, this one was dominated by Spain.
6 min read