His appearance here made him the youngest player in the 64-year history of the competition but the braces and fresh face were the only real clues as to his youth because he plays with a maturity and confidence far beyond his tender years.
Yamal does not turn 17 until a day before the final on July 14 – he was still 12 months from being born when Croatia’s Luka Modric made the first of his nine major tournament appearances at the 2006 World Cup.
But if this repurposed Spain continue to attack with this sort of precision and penetration, and Yamal will be key to it, then they may fancy their chances of being back at Berlin’s Olympiastadion for the competition’s finale next month.
It was hard to marry this fast, direct, incisive, energetic Spain with the one from the World Cup in Qatar 18 months ago. Luis Enrique’s team enjoyed oodles of possession but invariably did precious little with it and seemed to find themselves on a persistently circular route to a goal they too seldom threatened.
The 2024 version under Luis de la Fuente are comfortable in possession as you would expect but not slaves to it – and what a refreshing difference it makes. As Croatia discovered to their cost – coach Zlatko Dalic apologised to their fans for the performance – Spain will not make 10 passes when one will do.
It felt as instructive as it did symbolic that the country’s run of 136 competitive games with more possession than an opponent stretching back 16 years to Euro 2008 final ended here. Croatia had 53 per cent of the ball yet lost, emphatically. It was almost like De la Fuente was intent on exorcising some of the ghosts from Qatar.
“We are turning this national team into a team with many options,” the Spain coach said. “Our opponents know we can hurt them with possession or attacks based on positional play. When we wanted to play on the front foot, we did, and I think we pressed high very well.”
One such direct pass from the excellent Fabián Ruiz sliced Croatia open and got the ball rolling and it somehow felt fitting that the much maligned Alvaro Morata should claim the first.
The former Chelsea striker has often been a lightning rod for Spain’s shortcomings in recent years but he looked far happier with the flying Nico Williams and Yamal on the flanks either side of him and Ruiz and Pedri buzzing around in behind, both persistent, lurking menaces. Morata has had death threats and all sorts of abuse directed at him in the past but it was warming to see so many fans standing to applaud and even hail him with outstretched arms, as if praying to some form of deity, when he took his leave in the 67th minute.
