Yamal stars as Spain rout Saudi Arabia 4–0 ahead of Uruguay decider

Yamal and Spain dismantle Saudi Arabia 4–0

Your team rolled through Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. 4–0, and Lamine Yamal was the star (6). The 18-year-old scored in his hometown of Rocafonda during the group stage, and the praise is stacking up. Ralf Rangnick and Thomas Tuchel both weighed in afterwards: "Hier ist Yamal, hier ist Spanien" (6).

Unai Simon kept a third straight clean sheet. That matches Spain's defensive record from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the only other time the national team managed three consecutive shutouts at the tournament.

Uruguay on Wednesday: top spot on the line

A draw or a win against Uruguay, and Spain win Group H. That avoids Argentina in the round of sixteen. Argentina have already locked up their group (3).

Uruguay have not beaten Spain in a long time. They carry a negative streak into this match and need a result to qualify themselves (3).

Mikel Oyarzabal is not pretending the Argentina scenario is not on the squad's radar. "Es inevitable tenerlo en mente," he said, it is impossible not to think about it (7). But he also made it clear where his head is: the national team has absolute priority for him at this World Cup (2).

Julián Álvarez asks to leave Atlético Madrid

Julián Álvarez has requested a transfer from Atlético Madrid (5). The Argentine forward made the request formally, and the Spanish press tracked his movements the day after (5). No destination has been confirmed.

Real Madrid win a round against LaLiga

Real Madrid announced that the Supreme Court has definitively confirmed the nullity of decisions made by LaLiga president Javier Tebas that blocked the club from participating in meetings of the audiovisual rights control body in 2022 (4). The club is also preparing a separate Supreme Court appeal in the wider CVC battle (4).

Sergio Canales returns to Racing

Sergio Canales is heading home. The former Real Madrid and Real Sociedad midfielder has signed for Racing Santander, the club where he started, in what AS calls a galactic-level coup for the Segunda side (8). The Cantabrian press is already talking about "Canalesmanía" (8).

Felicia Schröder close to Real Madrid for a world-record fee

Swedish teenager Felicia Schröder, 19, is reportedly on the verge of joining Real Madrid for what AS describes as "astronomical figures", a world-record sum (1). The move would be a landmark moment for the women's game in Spain.

Fan reactions

The Uruguay match is consuming the discussion online. Real Madrid fans on Reddit are mapping out the bracket permutations: if Uruguay win on Friday, Spain could face Argentina in the round of sixteen (Reddit). Elsewhere, fans noted that Spain are one of only four teams yet to concede a goal after two matchdays, alongside Ghana, Argentina, and Mexico (Reddit). A third thread pointed out that every World Cup winner since 2006 has dropped points in the group stage, something Spain have not done yet (Reddit).