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Merino replaced Dani Olmo in the 86th minute and found the back of the net just two minutes later to put Spain 2-1 ahead against Belgium.
Mikel Merino celebrates after scoring Spain’s second goal vs Belgium. (Picture Credit: AP)
Mikel Merino came off the bench to score yet another decisive goal for Spain on Friday (July 10) and seal their place in the semifinals of the FIFA World Cup 2026. The Arsenal forward replaced Dani Olmo in the 86th minute of the match played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood and found the back of the net just two minutes later to put Spain 2-1 ahead against Belgium in the second quarterfinal of the tournament.
Merino’s strike eventually proved to be the winner as Spain managed to hold on to their lead and secure a place in the FIFA World Cup semifinals for the first time in 16 years.
La Roja, who won the World Cup title in 2010, will now face France in the first semifinal of FIFA World Cup 2026.
The dramatic finale came after Fabian Ruiz had opened the scoring for Spain, before Charles De Ketelaere grabbed one back for Belgium against the run of play before halftime.
Welcoming Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku back to the starting XI, Belgium were rocked by a hamstring injury during the warm-ups to captain Youri Tielemans that hit them hard.
Having already lost Amadou Onana to a ruptured ACL, the Red Devils would have to play a near second-choice midfield against the Spanish possession masters.
It was Spain who struck first. On the half-hour mark, Pedro Porro played a sharp one-two with Lamine Yamal before expertly cutting it back from near the byline to Dani Olmo.
Olmo’s shot was parried by Thibaut Courtois, but fell to Fabian Ruiz, who fired it home.
Belgium, having fought back astonishingly late from 2-0 down in the round-of-32 to dispatch Senegal, did not panic and grabbed one back in the 41st minute. De Bruyne slid a through ball wide to Timothy Castagne. His cross found De Ketelaere, who perfectly timed his run and outmuscled Barcelona youngster Pau Cubarsi to head home.
It was the first goal Spain had conceded this World Cup.
A tearful Courtois was forced off by injury after 70 minutes. He was replaced by Lammens, the 24-year-old Manchester United ‘keeper making his World Cup debut in daunting circumstances.
It turned out to be a nightmare.
In the 88th minute, Cubarsi shot low from range, and Lammens should have held onto the ball. Instead substitute Mikel Merino was first to the rebound, smashing it home.
It was the Arsenal midfielder’s second straight late winner from the bench, after he scored the crucial goal against Portugal in stoppage time on Monday.
About the Author
Harshit Bisht is a sports journalist at CNN-News18, where he has been covering cricket, football, and major sporting events from around the world since July 1, 2024. Driven by a passion for storytelli…Read More
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