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Krishan Davis | Jul 03, 2026 05:38+08:00
Spain player ratings vs Austria: La Roja are starting to cook! Mikel Oyarzabal bags a brace & Lamine Yamal dazzles as European champions come to life in World Cup knockouts
Player ratings | Spain | Austria | World Cup | FEATURES | International | Spain vs Austria | M. Oyarzabal | L. Yamal
Spain outclassed Austria in Los Angeles to reach the last 16 of the 2026 World Cup courtesy of a 3-0 win on Thursday. The European champions avoided any sort of scare by dominating proceedings from the outset, securing a comfortable victory through Mikel Oyarzabal's brace and a header from Pedro Porro as they belatedly clicked into gear at the tournament.
La Roja took a little while to grow into the game but eventually took control and didn't look back. After Aymeric Laporte had headed narrowly wide, Marc Cucurella thought he had opened the scoring when he blasted in from a corner, but the goal was harshly ruled out for a foul on the goalkeeper.
Lamine Yamal and Oyarzabal then drew two good saves in quick succession from impressive Austrian goalkeeper Alexander Schlager, but the breakthrough came four minutes later when the latter swept home Cucurella's precise low cross. The former should have doubled the advantage in first-half stoppage time, but he was denied again at the near post after Alex Baena's free-kick was feathered onto the crossbar.
The second period would follow a similar pattern. Rodri saw a low drive deflect just wide, and Austria had their best chance through substitute Sasa Kalajdzic, but it was soon 2-0 and game over as Baena picked out Porro in the middle and his downward header flew beyond the 'keeper.
Yamal saw an effort cleared off the line by David Alaba with five minutes to play, but Oyarzabal did put some gloss on the scoreline in the dying embers as he side-footed another Cucurella cross into the back of the net. Spain progress to face either Portugal or Croatia in the last 16.
GOAL rates Spain's players from Los Angeles...
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Goalkeeper & Defence
Unai Simon (6/10): Didn't have to make a single save to make. Should have been charged for a ticket.
Pedro Porro (8/10): Able to play as an auxiliary winger without shirking his defensive duties. Fine header to make it two.
Pau Cubarsi (7/10): Assured display despite his tender years. Got his team up the pitch.
Aymeric Laporte (7/10): Solid display, albeit he didn't have much to deal with defensively. Saw plenty of the ball and passed smoothly.
Marc Cucurella (8/10): Played as high up the pitch as possible. Saw a goal controversially disallowed but teed up Oyarzabal not long afterwards and repeated the trick late on.
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Midfield
Rodri (7/10): Metronomic at the base of midfield, and made a big intervention to cut out a rare Austrian foray forward.
Pedri (6/10): Typically cute pass created a good first-half opening. Always available to receive and recycle the ball.
Dani Olmo (6/10): Squeezed out after a brilliant turn in the box. Put in a real shift defensively.
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Attack
Lamine Yamal (7/10): Man-marked tightly by Konrad Laimer but had plenty of bright moments, as usual, as he took things up a notch. Denied a certain goal late on.
Mikel Oyarzabal (8/10): Made his first finish look very simple from Cucurella's pinpoint cross, and his second was very similar. Deadly in the box.
Alex Baena (7/10): Looked sharp initially and was involved in a lot of Spain's best play. Great cross to tee up Porro.
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Subs & Manager
Mikel Merino (5/10): Unable to make much of an impact.
Ferran Torres (5/10): Wasted a couple of decent attacking positions.
Gavi (N/A): Given just a five-minute runout off the bench.
Marc Pubil (N/A): On in stoppage time to shore things up.
Fabian Ruiz (N/A): On very late too, and probably won't be too happy about that.
Luis de la Fuente (7/10): Spain's most convincing performance yet at this World Cup, and ominously it looks like they have clicked into gear at just the right moment.