2026 FIFA World Cup Day 29 recap: Arsenal man capitalises on Man Utd star’s error to set up Yamal vs Mbappe

It is official: Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappé will face off in the World Cup for the first time after Spain got through their quarter-final clash against Belgium. 

Luis de la Fuente’s men edged out the Red Devils in a tight encounter in Los Angeles on day 29 of the FIFA World Cup. 

Here’s a recap of the action. 

Spain came into the clash as the favourite, and they showed their intent by dominating possession as expected. 

La Roja, known for their crisp passing game, kept the ball for the majority of the opening half as they searched for the opener. 

Although it took a while before their dominance paid off, Spain took the lead on the half-hour mark through Fabian Ruiz, who finished off a rebound after Thibaut Courtois had initially saved an effort from Dani Olmo. 

However, Belgium refused to be flustered, as Charles De Ketelaere, who scored twice in the win over the USA, restored parity for Rudi Garcia’s men going into the break. 

De Ketelaere’s goal was the first goal Spain conceded in this tournament, and it appeared to rock them as they failed to create a meaningful chance following the break. 

Despite having a larger share of the possession, De la Fuente’s men never really troubled Belgium’s defence. 

The European champions could not find a way past a compact Belgium defence in their search for the winner. 

However, they were given a lifeline after Courtois, who had been impressive all tournament, went off with an injury. 

That proved to be a turning point in the game as Spain scored the winner following an error by Senne Lammens, who replaced Courtois. 

The Manchester United goalkeeper spilt a long-range shot from Pau Cubarsi into the path of Mikel Merino, who tapped home from close range to score the winner two minutes from time. 

The Arsenal star has now scored the winner as a substitute for the second consecutive game, making him the first player in World Cup history to achieve that feat. 

With the win, Spain will now face France in the semi-final, setting up a showdown between Yamal and Mbappe. 

Yamal has won the last two international meetings after Spain beat France in the semi-final of Euro 2024 and the semi-final of the UEFA Nations League last year.