Spain Advances to Final After 16 Years, Defeats France 2-0

[Anchor]

The "Invincible Armada" Spain has decisively defeated France 2-0, securing a spot in the final for the first time in 16 years.

Hong Seok-jun reports.

[Reporter]

Ahead of the highly anticipated match between France and Spain, a moment of silence was held to honor the victims of the Nice terror attack that occurred exactly 10 years ago. Spain seized a decisive opportunity in the 20th minute of the first half.

Taking advantage of an inaccurate touch by French defender Digne inside the penalty box, Yamal rushed in, drawing a penalty kick after the ball struck Digne's foot as he attempted to clear it.

Oyarzabal, stepping up as the kicker, precisely struck the bottom right corner of the goal to score the opening goal.

Oyarzabal recorded his 5th goal of the tournament.

In the 30th minute of the first half, France faced further misfortune as central defender Saliba was substituted due to an injury. Spain intensified its offensive, with Yamal breaking through the defense with a brilliant one-two pass to a teammate, leading to a shot by Luis.

France looked for opportunities through Mbappe's penetration into open space, but finished the first half without recording a single shot on target.

In the 13th minute of the second half, Spain's Poro, a former teammate of Son Heung-min at Tottenham, exploded with an additional goal.

He broke down the defensive line by exchanging passes with Olmo and succeeded in scoring with a right-footed shot.

Later, Yamal penetrated the space behind the defense and found the back of the net again, but it was ruled offside.

France attempted to mount a comeback, but struggled to break through the Spanish defense, which holds the record for the fewest goals conceded per game.

With Mbappe's free kick and Dembele's shot both being blocked late in the second half, Spain's 2-0 victory was confirmed.

Spain has reached the final for the first time in 16 years since the 2010 tournament, where they stood at the top while maintaining an unbeaten streak of 37 A-matches.

France, which was aiming for its third consecutive final appearance, has ended its journey.

(Video Editing: Ha Seong-won)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.