Euro 2024: Spain In Final, France Beaten By Lamine Yamal's Wonder Goal And Spain Resilience (Image: x.com/EURO2024)
Spain defeated Kylian Mbappe’s France to enter into the final of Euro 2024. There was an argument in favour of Spain before the kick off in Munich as they were about to play France in the semifinals of Euro 2024. The wish came from major voices including the Argentine manager Lionel Scaloni, in which they demanded a Spanish victory against the French. The reason they cited was the boring and not-so beautiful game Didier Deschamps’s men were playing in the last five games they attended in Germany in this edition of coveted European championship. The main talking was that Mbappe and co entered the last four without scoring a goal from the open play and mostly concentrated on the defensive prowess the French national team holds. And finally, as many wished, the better team on the ground and the tournament won the game.
Spain was organised, resilient and classy. They managed their goals with extreme fashion. The wunderkind Lamine Yamal outplayed the best player in the world with a wonderful goal and terrific runs in French forte.
Albeit the arguments against the French, the scenes we witnessed in Allianz Arena was completely different. It looked like a coordinated France team was waiting for their well-deserved opponents. Luis de la Fuente’s team which included the best young talents from modern-day football did not give up their hope and remained persistent to prove why they are the best in this tournament.
The first breakthrough of the game came through a surprise goal from Randal Kolo Muani who scored from a Kylian Mbappe assist at the eighth minute. Till then the Spaniards had controlled the game completely and the authority was unmatchable for the first quarter of any game. But, the Spanish confidence was not rattled at all and after 20 minutes clocked, they returned two goals in four minutes only to put their world class defense into pressure. The first goal by Lamine Yamal, a curling volley to the far corner of the net, was world class and it was the catalyst that increased the resilience of the Spanish.
A French victory would have been a great boost for the national conscience, as the country recently voted against right-wing extremism. The players were outspoken about the country’s political turmoil, both in words and actions.
The second semifinal will be played on Wednesday in which England will play against the Netherlands.
