Spain Ease Past Austria 3-0 to Reach World Cup Round of 16
Spain booked their place in the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 with a commanding 3-0 victory over Austria.
La Roja had to wait for the breakthrough after Marc Cucurella’s 28th-minute strike was ruled out for a foul on the Austria goalkeeper. Spain made it count eight minutes later when Real Sociedad forward Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring in the 36th minute, finishing from Cucurella’s cross for his first goal of the tournament.
Oyarzabal’s goal ended a long wait for Spain. It is the first time since Andrés Iniesta scored in the 2010 World Cup final against the Netherlands that a Spanish player has found the net in a World Cup knockout match.
Tottenham Hotspur defender Pedro Porro doubled Spain’s lead after heading home from an Álex Baena cross. Mikel Oyarzabal then completed his brace with a composed tap-in in the 88th minute to seal a 3-0 win.
Spain will now face either Portugal or Croatia in the Round of 16. The other teams already through are Canada, France, Paraguay, Norway, Mexico, the United States, England, Belgium, Morocco, and Brazil.
At the back, goalkeeper Unai Simón set a new record. The 29-year-old has now gone 520+ minutes without conceding at this World Cup, the longest clean-sheet run in tournament history.