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La Roja’s dominance makes the event a 2026 World Cup final
Spain fully imposed their personality against Argentina in the 2026 World Cup final in the first half, producing one of their best displays of the tournament amid Lionel Messi’s side’s apparent inability to impose their style or match Unai Simeone’s goal.
Spain played their usual style based on possession and control and managed to almost completely isolate Argentina’s attacking third led by Messi, closing down all spaces and forcing the tango players to retreat for long periods.
Rodri was the key to this excellence as he controlled the tempo of the game superbly and constantly dropped between the two central defenders to launch attacks, giving Pau Cobarchi and Aymeric Laporte the freedom to build up the play, while opening up continuous passing angles that helped Spain win the ball easily and break Argentina’s pressure.
La Roja also relied on high pressing and advanced defending which prevented Messi and his team-mates from receiving the ball in dangerous areas, so the Spanish dominance was also reflected in the numbers, after Spain had 64% possession compared to Argentina’s 36%.
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Spain’s superiority was not limited to possession, but also appeared in attack as the Spaniards had 3 shots on target compared to Argentina’s zero, clearly showing the extent to which Luis de la Fuente’s men controlled the first 45 minutes.
In the face of this superiority, Messi and his teammates did not find openings to penetrate the Spanish defense, forcing the Argentine national team to resort to long balls behind the defenders. However, goalkeeper Unai Simon played the role of libero to a great extent and more than once came out to intercept the ball before it reached the Argentine forwards.
Despite Spain’s clear advantage, the result is still open to all possibilities, especially since Argentina have proven more than once during the current edition their ability to turn the game around from half chances, using the experience of Messi and his teammates to face the decisive moments.
