The Spanish national team successfully secured a place in the 2026 World Cup round of 16 after recording a convincing 3-0 victory over Austria. In that crucial knockout match, coach Luis de la Fuente praised his squad's performance, considering it near-flawless.
La Furia Roja's victory came thanks to a brace from Mikel Oyarzabal and an additional goal from Pedro Porro. De la Fuente emphasized that this success proves the composure and identity of a big team when facing pressure at a crucial stage of the tournament.
"Big teams always show their best quality at the right moment. I feel that today we put on an extraordinary performance. Even though we played nearly flawlessly in all aspects, we will continue to evaluate ourselves to improve our quality," De la Fuente stated, as reported by FIFA's official website.
Spain's dominance in the match was stark. In addition to scoring three goals, Spain's defense played with immense discipline, preventing Austria from managing a single shot on target throughout the 90 minutes. On the other hand, Spain's attack was aggressive, creating 23 chances, 10 of which were on target.
Looking ahead to the next round, the 65-year-old strategist is aware that the challenge will become tougher. However, he remains optimistic due to the fighting spirit of the players who are always hungry for victory and continuous improvement.
Specifically, De la Fuente also praised Mikel Oyarzabal's impressive full-match performance as the main attacking engine. For him, Oyarzabal's contribution and the collective effort of the entire team are key to Spain advancing further in the world's biggest football tournament this year.
