Spain’s Lamine Yamal joins the Pele-Messi club with his first World Cup goal, becoming only the second player…

Lamine Yamal, Lionel Messi Lamine Yamal scored his first World Cup start as Spain beat Saudi Arabia 4-0 in Atlanta on Sunday to record their first win of the tournament.The 18-year-old forward scored in the 11th minute when he turned at the far post and converted a low cross. The goal made him the eighth-youngest goalscorer in World Cup history and helped Spain bounce back after being held to a 0-0 draw by Cape Verde in the opening game.Yamal’s name is now part of a list that includes the likes of Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Brazil’s Pele.At the age of 18 years and 343 days, Yamal scored his first World Cup goal, just 14 days younger than Messi when he scored his first World Cup goal at the age of 18 years and 357 days.According to Opta, Yamal is only the second player aged 18 or younger to score the opening goal for his country in a World Cup match. The second was Pele, who was 17 when he scored for Brazil against Wales in 1958.Yamal missed the end of Barcelona’s season with a hamstring injury and came off the bench in Spain’s opener against Cape Verde.His place in the starting eleven became a major topic of discussion ahead of the match against Saudi Arabia and Spain coach Luis de la Fuente decided to give him a start. The decision quickly paid off as Yamal opened the scoring early in the match.Despite his age, Yamal is already considered one of the leading young players in world football. He also played a key role in Spain’s triumph at the 2024 European Championship when he entered the tournament aged 16.Spain’s win gets their World Cup campaign back on track after a disappointing result in their opening game.