What a courageous performance and what a tremendous achievement by the Blue Sharks! In their first-ever World Cup match, Cape Verde held their own against one of the tournament favorites, Spain (0-0).
Led by a superb Vozinha, the Cape Verdeans secured a very valuable point.
Considered one of the favorites for the 2026 World Cup, Spain failed to break down Cape Verde on Monday in Atlanta, USA (0-0).
Without Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal at kickoff, both recovering from injuries and brought on late in the match, La Roja had to settle for a goalless draw against the 64th-ranked nation in the FIFA rankings.
This result benefitted Saudi Arabia and Uruguay, who will face off tonight to conclude the first round of Group H matches.
One statistic alone sums up the first half. Playing alone up front under Spanish coach Luis de la Fuente, Real Sociedad striker Mikel Oyarzabal didn’t touch the ball once during the first half-hour.
Cape Verde making debut
This was due to a perfectly organized Cape Verdean team, which defended solidly but didn’t hesitate to launch counter-attacks as soon as they won possession. Vozinha, the Blue Sharks’ goalkeeper, was responsible for extinguishing the few dangerous attacks with some well-timed saves.
Regarding the context of the two countries, Spain entered the World Cup as one of the favorites to win the tournament; it was eliminated in the Round of 16 at the 2022 FIFA World Cup but returns with a potentially deeper, faster and more dynamic squad.
Meanwhile, Cape Verde is making its FIFA World Cup debut after finishing with 23 points, four points ahead of African powerhouse Cameroon.
