Lightning strikes twice, and sometimes it wears a number six jersey for La Roja. If you had a sense of déjà vu watching the closing minutes at Los Angeles Stadium, nobody can blame you. Mikel Merino has done it again. The Spanish midfielder came off the bench to score an 88th-minute winner, breaking Belgian hearts and sending Spain into the 2026 World Cup semifinals with a breathless 2-1 victory.
Football matches at this level aren't won by starting elevens alone. They're won by managers who know how to close a game and players who accept their roles as late-game executioners. Luis de la Fuente has masterfully crafted a squad where superstars wait their turn, and today it paid off massively.
The Deja Vu Moment that Broke Belgium
Luis de la Fuente made a series of interesting tactical adjustments, but none mattered more than his 85th-minute roll of the dice. He brought on Mikel Merino for Dani Olmo. It took exactly three minutes for the Arsenal midfielder to leave his mark.
The play started with Pau Cubarsí. The young Barcelona defender had a tough first half but completely recovered his composure after the interval. He launched a speculative but dangerous shot that created absolute chaos in the Belgian box. Senne Lammens, who had replaced the injured Thibaut Courtois in the 70th minute, made a colossal mess of the clearance. The ball spilled out, and Merino pounced on the error with the predatory instinct of a seasoned striker.
It's a remarkable trend for Merino, who has turned late-game heroics into a personal brand. Just days earlier, he scored a 119th-minute winner against Portugal. Now, he's dumped Belgium out of the quarterfinals.
Fabián Ruiz Validates a Bold Selection
Everyone expected Pedri to start in the midfield. Instead, De la Fuente opted for Fabián Ruiz in a move that raised quite a few eyebrows before kickoff. It was Ruiz's first start since Spain’s tournament opener, and the manager's faith was rewarded inside the first half hour.
Spain’s wingers did what they do best. Lamine Yamal and Pedro Porro combined beautifully down the right flank, torturing the Belgian left-back Maxim De Cuyper. Porro picked out Dani Olmo in the area. While Courtois managed to block Olmo's initial effort, the rebound sat up perfectly for Ruiz. He hammered it home in the 30th minute to make it 1-1, validating his manager’s gamble and providing the breakthrough Spain desperately needed.
The Night the Great Defensive Wall of Spain Finally Crumbled
Spain entered this quarterfinal match with a historic, mind-boggling defensive record. They hadn't conceded a single goal in their first five matches of the tournament. Goalkeeper Unai Simón was riding a historic 650-minute shutout streak that dated all the way back to the Qatar World Cup in 2022.
That streak died in the 41st minute. Belgium’s Jérémy Doku started causing problems, shifting the momentum away from a dominant Spanish midfield. Timothy Castagne found space on the right wing and floated a beautiful, looping cross into the penalty box.
Charles De Ketelaere wanted it more. The 25-year-old Atalanta forward muscled his way past Pau Cubarsí, rising high to power a header past Unai Simón. It was a brilliant piece of traditional center-forward play, making Belgium the very first team to breach the Spanish defense in this entire tournament. The goal sent the teams into the locker rooms level at 1-1, completely shifting the psychological dynamic of the match.
Injury Woes and the Goalkeeping Meltdown
Belgium didn't just lose a football match; they lost their leadership before the ball was even kicked. Captain Youri Tielemans suffered an injury during warmups and had to be pulled from the starting lineup, joining the already sidelined Amadou Onana. Despite Kevin De Bruyne returning to the pitch, the Belgian midfield struggled to maintain possession against Rodri and Ruiz.
The real disaster struck in the 70th minute. Thibaut Courtois, who had been a wall in the first half, walked off with an apparent injury. On came Senne Lammens. Playing in a World Cup quarterfinal as a substitute goalkeeper is the ultimate pressure cooker, and Lammens unfortunately choked when it mattered most. His failure to clean up Cubarsí's late shot handed Merino the winning goal on a silver platter.
Even after going down 2-1, Belgium had a golden opportunity. In the dying seconds of stoppage time, Unai Simón made a reckless, baffling decision to charge out of his penalty box. He missed the ball completely, leaving an open net. It looked like a certain equalizer until Aymeric Laporte made a desperate, heroic defensive clearance to preserve the victory.
What Lies Ahead for the European Champions
Spain is moving on to the semifinals to face France in the Dallas area on Tuesday. They look like a complete team, blessed with tactical flexibility and a bench capable of changing any narrative.
If you're tracking Spain's path to the trophy, your immediate next step is to watch how De la Fuente manages his back line ahead of the semifinal clash. Pau Cubarsí and Aymeric Laporte both picked up yellow cards during the high-stress final minutes against Belgium, meaning the disciplinary tightrope is getting incredibly thin. Keep an eye on the squad fitness reports over the next 48 hours to see if Pedri returns to the starting lineup or if Fabián Ruiz has permanently locked down his position in the midfield engine room.
