Spain Shows Their Dominance In Seven Goal World Cup Display

On Nov. 23, Wednesday, Spain's World Cup campaign got off to a stunning start as they thrashed Costa Rica 7-0 in the Al Thumama Stadium, setting a tournament record and putting on the most dominant performance to date.

The 11th-minute goal by midfielder Dani Olmo was Spain's 100th World Cup goal overall and started a string of goals that was finished by Alvaro Morata in the 92nd minute, Al Jazeera reported.

Ten minutes later, Marco Asensio timed a run into the box perfectly to connect powerfully with a Jordi Alba cross.

Later, in the 31st minute, from the penalty spot, Ferran Torres scored the first of his two goals. The Barcelona winger subsequently scored his second goal in the 54th minute by taking advantage of the sluggish defense.

The youngest player to represent Spain in a World Cup, Gavi, who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club Barcelona, converted a flawless volley in the 74th minute to make it five.

At 18 years and 110 days, he also became the youngest goal scorer in a World Cup match since Brazilian legend Pelé netted in the 1958 final against Sweden.

As the game came to its close, substitutes Carlos Soler and Morata then rounded off the totally one-sided encounter, securing Spain its biggest-ever World Cup triumph.

With the side completing nearly 1,000 passes throughout the course of the game and enjoying more than 80 percent of possession overall, the Spaniards’ display was built on near-total control of the ball

The 19-year-old Spanish sensation Pedri stood out in center midfield, coordinating what seemed like each and every assault. The shell-shocked South American team, meanwhile, could only link together 166 passes and mustered just one shot on goal.

Spain is currently in Group E’s top spot after the result, with Japan in second following the Blue Samurai’s shock 2-1 victory over Germany earlier on Wednesday.

Spain’s next outing will see them come up against Germany on Sunday, Nov.27, with Japan set to take on Costa Rica on the same day. A win for La Roja would almost certainly mean elimination for their European rivals.