Spain have sealed their place in the Euro Nations final after a dramatic 5-4 victory over France in a nine-goal thriller at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Stuttgart on Thursday night.
The pulsating semi-final encounter had fans on the edge of their seats as Spain raced to a commanding lead before surviving a late French onslaught to book a showdown against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal in Sunday’s final.
Nico Williams got La Roja off to a flying start in the 22nd minute, finishing off a swift counterattack to put Spain 1-0 up. Just three minutes later, Mikel Merino doubled their lead with a powerful header to send Spain into the break 2-0 ahead.
The second half erupted with goals as Lamine Yamal slotted home a penalty in the 53rd minute to make it 3-0. Barely a minute later, Pedri added a fourth with a composed finish, leaving the French defense stunned.
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Kylian Mbappé pulled one back for France from the penalty spot in the 59th minute, but Yamal restored Spain’s dominance with his second goal of the night in the 67th, putting Spain 5-1 ahead.
However, France refused to go down without a fight. Randal Kolo Muani led the comeback charge, starting with Rayan Cherki’s strike in the 79th minute to reduce the deficit to 5-2. A David Vivian own goal in the 84th minute brought France within two, before Kolo Muani struck again deep into stoppage time to make it 5-4.
Despite the late scare, Spain held on to clinch the dramatic victory and now look ahead to what promises to be a blockbuster final against Portugal and their legendary captain, Cristiano Ronaldo, on Sunday.