With the European seasons finished, the attention of all soccer fans turned to the national games. While there is no major competition taking place this summer, there are still games to be watched. On June 4th, Portugal won their game against Germany and became the first finalist of the Nations League. Only a day later, Spain and France met for a semi-final of their own.
The game began with both Spain and France creating opportunity after opportunity. The pace was quick from the very first minute. Even though both teams came into the game strong, it was France that dominated the field.
That was the case until the 22nd minute when the tides turned and Nico Williams put Spain in the lead. Lamine Yamal passed the ball perfectly to Mikel Oyarzabal, who, after a quick fight with France’s defence, directed it over to the well-placed Williams. Before the tricolored could react, it had already found its way into their net.
With a new wind underneath their wings, Spain attacked again, only a few minutes later. Once again, it was Oyarzabal who put the ball right where it needed to be. What was different was the man who scored the goal. Instead of Williams, the glory of securing Spain’s lead fell onto Mikel Merino. A bit more than halfway through the first half, the score stood at 2:0.
The rest of the first half was filled with France’s attempt to equalise the score. There were a few moments in which it seemed like a goal was imminent, but the ball could never make it all the way into Unai Simon’s goal.
Before the whistle could begin the break, Spain saw one more great chance to increase their lead. After a free kick, the young Dean Hujisen managed to score a beautiful goal. Unfortunately for him, the score remained 2:0, as he was slightly offside during the attack.
Spain began pressing as soon as the game was resumed. Before the first minute could finish, they managed to create a dangerous chance. Although nothing came of it, they very quickly followed it up with a second, even more dangerous one. The score hadn’t changed, but the message sent by the team was clear. The two-goal lead was not enough to satisfy their ambition.
In the 51st minute, Yamal found himself in a great spot to attempt an attack. As he ran towards the goal, he was stopped by Adrien Rabio. The problem for France was that Rabio’s intervention did not comply with the rules. A yellow card was given to the defender, and Yamal lined up for a penalty. He shot and he scored, giving Spain their third goal of the evening.
Spain seemed set to only shoot doubles. Pedri, who was slightly invisible in the first half, created another opportunity and passed the ball to Williams. He then ran towards France’s goal and, before long, was ready to take it back. Williams sent the ball toward the midfielder, and Pedri finished the action with a beautiful goal. All those who doubted his performance had no choice but to eat their words.
The excitement was not finished quite yet. Not long after Spain scored their 4th goal, France’s attack ended with Kylian Mbappe fouled by Pedro Porro inside the Spanish penalty box. The offense could only end with a penalty awarded to the French team. Despite Simon’s best efforts, converting it into a goal was no issue for Real Madrid’s striker.
Yamal is currently one of the frontrunners for the Ballon d’Or. With him and Ousman Dembele as the two names associated with the trophy, many people believed that this match could reveal the winner. Yamal was eager to show that, out of the two of them, he was the better candidate. His efforts paid off in the 67th minute when he scored Spain’s 5th goal of the evening.
France was determined not to get written off before the game was over. Despite Spain’s big lead, they began putting their opponents under pressure. They just barely missed a goal when the ball hit the post of Simon’s goal. In the 79th minute, they found the opportunity they were looking for. Lyon’s Rayan Cherki scored France’s first in-game goal and breathed some hope back into his team.
With Spain’s lead decreased, France kept on attacking. Only a few minutes after the score changed to 5:2, it changed again, this time to show 5:3. The tricoloured’s third goal wasn’t scored by any of the French players. It was added to Dani Vivian’s tally of own goals.
Just when it seemed like the game was all but over, France struck again. Kolo Muani scored the team’s 4th goal in the third minute of added time. Suddenly, only one goal separated France from equalising the score.
Try as hard as they might have, the French players did not manage to score again. The long, hard game ended with Spain moving through to the semi-finals.
The match kept all viewers on their toes and provided some great football for those who miss seeing their teams play week in and week out. Spain was the deserved winner, but France showed that, despite losing, they are not a team to be trifled with. The Spanish team will face Portugal on June 8th.
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