Yamal inspires Spain to Croatia romp on World Cup homecoming

Seville witnessed Spain's victory over Croatia in a Nations League game, held at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan. Lamine Yamal, who was just 19 at the time, showcased his skills by scoring two goals and providing an assist. His teammates Marc Pubill and Nico Williams also contributed to Spain's 4-1 win. The win extended Spain's unbeaten streak to 40 matches, which included their triumph over Argentina in the United States.

Spain will now face Czech Republic in their next match on Saturday. Yamal's performance in the game strengthened his case for the Ballon d'Or, with voting closing on Monday and the winner set to be announced on October 26. Spain's coach, Luis de la Fuente, praised Yamal's impact on the team, stating that he would be more recognized for his contributions in the future.

Captain Rodri carried the World Cup trophy into the stadium, handed over by Sevilla legend Jesus Navas, who had won the trophy with Spain in 2010. Yamal, along with Alex Baena and Mikel Oyarzabal, started the match having scored in the previous day's thrilling 3-2 win over England at Wembley. Croatia made six changes from their weekend's win over the Czech Republic, leaving Luka Modric on the bench.

Yamal opened the scoring just two minutes into the game and added a second after 63 minutes, beating Croatia's goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic at his near post. The visitors equalized through Dion Beljo's header and Williams added a fourth goal just before the final whistle.