Spain easily defeated Austria 3-0 on Thursday to move into the World Cup last-16. Mikel Oyarzabal scored two goals, and Pedro Porro added another with a header.
The European champions controlled the game. They outplayed the Austrians at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Hollywood stars like Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem, and singer Rosalia were there to cheer for Spain.
This win could have been bigger. Spain had a goal disallowed and hit the woodwork with a free kick. Now, they look forward to a round-of-16 match against either Portugal or Croatia.
The stadium was packed with Spanish fans, and the excitement was high for the first time a World Cup favorite visited Los Angeles.
Spain increased the pressure gradually in the first half. After the first hydration break, they created several chances.
Marc Cucurella thought he scored from a corner taken by Lamine Yamal. But the referee ruled Pau Cubarsi had interfered with Austria's goalkeeper.
Austria's Alexander Schlager then made an excellent diving save, stopping a low shot from Oyarzabal.
Finally, in the 36th minute, Spain broke through. Pedri passed the ball wide to Cucurella, who crossed it to Oyarzabal. Oyarzabal calmly put it past the goalkeeper.
Spain's control continued to grow. Yamal caused trouble for the Austrian defense, especially from the right side.
An Alex Baena free kick hit the crossbar. Yamal's close follow-up shot was saved well.
Austria had a rare chance to score. Romano Schmid set up an unmarked Stefan Posch, but he mishandled the ball and lost it without shooting.
After the break, Spain kept pushing for more goals but could not finish.
Austria brought on two tall strikers, Sasa Kalajdzic and Marko Arnautovic, and began trying long passes. Kalajdzic headed one over the bar.
In the 66th minute, Spain scored again. Baena sent in a cross that Pedro Porro headed in for his first goal for Spain.
Some strong defending from Austria kept the score down. David Alaba made a crucial clearance from Yamal, who was taken off shortly after.
Spain passed the ball around confidently in the final minutes. The crowd responded with cheers of "Oles" as they looked ahead to a tougher match on Monday in Dallas.
In the 89th minute, Cucurella crossed the ball perfectly to a wide-open Oyarzabal in the penalty area. Oyarzabal slotted it home to finish the match.
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