INGLEWOOD, Calif. — When I asked one fan, Rob, for his favorite Spain player ahead of La Roja’s round of 32 clash with Austria on Thursday, a mix of disgust and astonishment flashed across his expressive eyes. It was such an intense reaction—although perhaps not for someone dressed as a traditional matador—I briefly feared that I had inadvertently insulted him in my stuttering attempt at broken Spanish. Fortunately not (this time). He was simply stunned at my line of inquiry when the answer was so exceedingly obvious. “Lamine, por supuesto.”It was a commonly shared opinion among a sea of red shirts, which invariably had Lamine Yamal’s No. 19 on the back, as they filtered into SoFi Stadium.WIN FIFA WORLD CUP 2026™ FINAL TICKETS & OTHER PRIZESCompete against the world. | Sports IllustratedBut for all the acclaim, there was also the sense that the people’s star hadn’t shone as brightly as many may have expected at the World Cup thus far.That opinion—captured by the number of fans who pointed out that Yamal had scored just one goal in the group stage—ignored the extenuating circumstances surrounding the Barcelona forward’s preparation. Without adding to his goal tally, Yamal reminded plenty of his brilliance.Yamal’s World Cup Has Only Just BegunLamine Yamal turned it on for Spain against Austria. | Kohjiro Kinno/Sports IllustratedYamal effectively used the first round as a competitive injury rehabilitation process. That he was able to show any of his signature spark after 50 days recovering from a torn hamstring is a testament to his prodigious talent. This was the first time that Luis de la Fuente didn’t have to manage his forward’s fitness. More importantly, Yamal is being compared to players of entirely different generations.As the 18-year-old has pointed out himself when quizzed on his perceived role in the Golden Boot race, Kylian Mbappé (27) and Erling Haaland (25) are not his peers. Lionel Messi could be the father of the kid he once bathed during a photoshoot for Barcelona’s 2008 calendar.Austrian fullback Konrad Laimer looked every one of his 29 years as he toiled under the SoFi’s suspended roof, swatting at the dappled sunlight in his fruitless attempts to shackle Yamal. Spain’s impish wriggler knocked the ball between the legs of Bayern Munich’s serial German champion three times in the opening 34 minutes alone. It’s times like these when time seems to slow with Yamal in full flight. The face of this World Cup is a talent that can lift the mind above the dull stir of Earth, turning down the ambient noise with each prod at the ball with the outside of his left boot. The only thing missing from his display of high-spec dribbling was a goal. Though it was not for a lack of trying. Yamal rattled off six shots, forcing Alexander Schlager into four excellent saves before finally finding a way past the goalkeeper only for David Alaba to hurriedly clear his effort off the goalline. Fortunately for his compatriots, Spain no longer looked quite so reliant upon a teenager who only recently had his braces taken off.Spain Rediscover Some BalanceBaena and Porro combined for Spain’s second goal. | Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty ImagesTwo years of injuries and indifferent form have washed away quite how impressive Nico Williams was for Spain during the 2024 European Championship. The jet-heeled Athletic Club forward scored twice as many goals as Yamal at that tournament, including one in the final against England. De la Fuente’s famous quote describing Yamal as a player “touched by God’s wand” was actually first used when discussing the Barcelona prodigy and Williams.The post-Euros misfortune has followed Williams into this summer’s tournament, with the 23-year-old a victim of Uruguay’s frustrations in a battling group stage finale. Álex Baena kept his place on the left wing in the absence of his injured compatriot, enjoying his best performance of the World Cup—against an admittedly porous opponent.Yamal’s gravity in a game is palpable. The pitch can often look tilted towards that left-footed planet on the right wing, every pass funnelled out wide, a cluster of defenders clamping around the one player everyone is looking out for. That scrutiny from the opposition is not going anywhere, but it creates opportunity for Yamal’s teammates to benefit from less attention if they are brave enough to pass it to someone else. On Thursday, they were.All three of Spain’s goals came from the left wing. Marc Cucurella scurried forward from fullback to tee up both of Mikel Oyarzabal’s crisp strikes in between Baena’s clipped cross for Pedro Porro to nod in.If Spain can continue to attack with variety, the reigning European champion will have a better chance of replicating its continental success on a global level. Yet, if the challenge does fall solely on Yamal’s shoulders, he has the strength of personality to bear the weight. “I understand that I’m the player who generates the most excitement,” the teenager shrugged. “I’m the player who can change the game. Pressure exists when you can’t do what’s asked of you, but I can do it.” He most certainly can.READ THE LATEST WORLD CUP NEWS, ANALYSIS AND INSIGHT FROM SI FCAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow