The Spanish men’s soccer team did not have the start to the 2026 World Cup that they’d wanted.
The club entered the tournament as one of the favorites to win, since they boast one of the most talented roster in the world. But talent doesn’t always equate to goals or wins, which was shown by the fact that Spain suffered a 0-0 draw against Cape Verde during their first group stage match.
Spain’s World Cup run is far from over, however, and there’s still plenty of time for this high-powered offense to find its flow. And if they’re going to do so, they’ll need 18-year-old phenom Lamine Yamal to find his form.
Unfortunately, Yamal will need to find his fitness first, as he’s still working his way back to 100% from a hamstring injury he suffered before the World Cup began. He entered Spain’s first game in the 71st minute and wasn’t able to turn the tide in his team’s favor.
It’s unlikely that Yamal will start in Spain’s second group stage game against Saudi Arabia on June 21. But he should be able to play more than he did against Cape Verde, and could perhaps score his first World Cup goal.
Yamal’s girlfriend, 21-year-old influencer Ines Garcia, will be hoping for something to cheer about. But she’ll be supporting him regardless, just as she did with her outfit before Spain’s first World Cup game.
Garcia made an Instagram post showing several photos of her wearing a Yamal No. 19 Spain jersey earlier this week. The post was captioned, “❤️🇪🇸🤞🏾🫱🏾🫲🏽😍”.
Garcia, along with all of Spain’s other soccer fans, will be hoping to see fireworks from Yamal on Sunday.
