2026 World Cup: Merino’s Goal Sends Spain Into Semi-Finals

CALIFORNIA: Spain continued their march into the semi-finals of the 2026 World Cup after defeating Belgium 2-1 in a quarter-final clash at the Los Angeles Stadium early this morning.

Substitute Mikel Merino continued to be the ‘super-sub’ for the La Roja squad when he scored his team’s winning goal in the 88th minute after tapping in a ball from defender Pau Cubarsi’s attempt.

Thus, the victory puts Spain closer to replicating their achievement in the 2010 edition, where they successfully advanced to the final before becoming champions.

In the match, Spain, who are the European champions, opened the scoring through Fabian Ruiz after he calmly took a shot to beat Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

However, the Red Devils did not wait long before equalising 11 minutes later through Charles De Ketelaere, who headed in a cross from Timothy Castagne.

When the 90 minutes of action looked set to end with a 1-1 draw, Merino, who came on to replace Dani Olmo in the 86th minute, needed only two minutes to score Spain’s winning goal.

After confirming their advance to the semi-finals, La Roja will face a tough challenge in their quest for a place in the final when they take on the 1998 and 2018 champions, France.

AGENSI