Spain won their second World Cup on Sunday, defeating Argentina 1-0 in a dominant final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Ferran Torres scored the winning goal in the 106th minute, as Spain controlled the match from start to finish. Rodrigo Hernández, known as Rodri, was named the tournament's best player, while Pau Cubarsí won the young player award and Unai Simón the Golden Glove.
Dominant Performance and Key Statistics
Spain's victory was built on a suffocating defensive performance. Argentina failed to register a single shot on target, and according to Opta, it was only the third time in 900 World Cup games that a team had no shots. Spain had 20 shots, with Torres's goal coming from a well-worked move. The team's expected goals against (xG) for the entire tournament was just 0.3 per game, highlighting their defensive solidity.
"If my gloves could talk, they would say they didn't have much work to do," Simón said. Aymeric Laporte added, "Many teams depend too much on the back line, but not Spain."
Celebrations and Traditions
After the match, the dressing room was filled with joy. Players received replica trophies in Louis Vuitton trunks and Lego versions. Marc Cucurella had buried a coin in the pitch before the match, a tradition started by Joan Capdevila in 2010. He also faced a bet: if Spain won, he would get a tattoo of coach Luis de la Fuente's face. "I said: 'You made a bad mistake,'" de la Fuente joked. "But it's not like I am so horrendously ugly that you have to put it somewhere it can't be seen. And they are men of their word."
Lamine Yamal embraced Lionel Messi after the final, a moment captured by photographers. Nico Williams gave his medal to his mother in the front row. The team departed with large bags filled with shirts, balls, boots, and pieces of the net they had cut down.
Rodri's Journey and Leadership
Rodri, who missed Spain's 2010 World Cup win while at a camp in Connecticut, returned to the US as a champion. He had overcome a torn cruciate ligament to lead the team. "It doesn't matter if you fall, there's always a reason to get up again," he said. He was the last to leave the dressing room, carrying the actual World Cup trophy.
De la Fuente, who started his coaching career in the third tier and was unemployed for 18 months before joining the federation's youth system, has now won the European Championship and World Cup with the senior side. "They asked me what there is left to win; we said the next game in September because they're insatiable," he said.
