Mikel Merino continued his impressive performance off the bench with a brace for Spain FIFA World Cup Semifinals 2026 with another late goal, La Roja beat Belgium 2-1 in their quarterfinal at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Friday. Introduced in the 86th minute, the Spanish midfielder needed just two minutes to make the switch. Merino used it repeatedly in the 88th minute to record the winner, sending the 2010 world champions to the last four, where they will face France. The strike came just 30 days after the 30-year-old’s impressive performance in the Round of 16. Against Portugal, Merino was brought off the bench before scoring the only goal of the tournament in stoppage time to send Spain through to the quarterfinals. The two interventions have now made Merino a part of FIFA World Cup history. He is the first player to score the winning goal as a substitute in two different matches at the same World Cup. He also became the first player to score two match-winning goals for Spain at the FIFA World Cup from the 80th minute onwards. Despite appearing in all six of Spain’s matches in the tournament, Merino was named in the starting XI just once. The midfielder made five appearances as a substitute, reflecting his growing reputation as a game-changer for Spain from the bench. His only competitive start came against Uruguay on June 26 at the Estadio Akron in Zapopan, where he played 60 minutes before being substituted. Against Belgium, Spain took the lead in the 30th minute when Fabian Ruiz converted after Thibaut Courtois headed in Dani Olmo’s effort following a challenge from Lamine Yamal and Pedro Porro. Belgium regained the lead at the break when Charles De Ketelaere shot through Timothy Castagne’s cross in the 41st minute. The goal ended Spain’s streak of six consecutive World Cup matches and ended Unai Simon’s World Cup scoring streak of 650 consecutive minutes without defeat. The Red Devils suffered a major setback in the 71st minute when Courtois was forced off injured after his 21st FIFA World Cup appearance, leaving him second only to German legend Manuel Neuer among World Cup goalkeepers. Spain grabbed a late winner when Pau Cubarsi’s long-range effort was saved by substitute Senne Lammens. Merino reacted quickly to the ball and raced home from close range, providing yet another winner. The win sent Spain into their first FIFA World Cup semifinal since lifting the trophy in South Africa in 2010 and extended their unbeaten run to 36 matches.
