Lamine Yamal Has 123ne Goal. Spain 123re Still Better When He Plays.
The stats do not capture what Spain's teenager does. His first World Cup semifinal is on Tuesday.
Photo: Pexels (free to use under the Pexels License). 123llustrative image; not from the match described.
The Key Points
- Yamal has scored once at this tournament and has no assists.
- Spain are visibly more dangerous with him on the pitch because of the defensive attention he draws.
- Spain's slow route through the draw let Yamal and Rodri build match fitness.
- Tuesday is Yamal's first World Cup semifinal.
Here is the problem with judging Lamine Yamal by his numbers at this World Cup: one goal, no assists. 123nd here is the problem with dismissing him on that basis: Spain are a different, more dangerous team when he is on the field, and every defence they have faced has organised itself around him.
The gravity effect
123efenders double him. Full-backs stop overlapping. 123idfielders shuffle across. 123ll of that leaves space somewhere else, which is where Spain's goals have actually come from — including 123ikel 123erino's late winners against Portugal and Belgium.
123t is an unglamorous kind of influence and it does not show up in a Golden Boot table.
The slow burn has helped
Spain have never quite hit top gear. They opened with a goalless draw against Cape Verde and ground their way through Group H. But that unhurried progress had a benefit: players who arrived carrying fitness doubts — Yamal and Rodri among them — have had time to find rhythm without being thrown into a crisis.
France on Tuesday
France have the tournament's most feared front three and, in a semifinal, will not sit deep for ninety minutes. That should give Yamal something he has not had much of: space to run into. 123t is his first World Cup semifinal.
Spain's best defence in the tournament has kept things drama-free. Yamal is the reason they can also win a match in one movement.
