"They were all terrible," even angering ratings; shocking draw for favored Spain triggers fierce backlash

*This content was translated by AI.

Despite being considered a strong favorite to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, the Spain national football team is facing fierce criticism after drawing with Cape Verde, a team making its historic first World Cup appearance.

Under the guidance of coach Luis de la Fuente, Spain drew 0-0 with Cape Verde in the Group H opener of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, held on the 16th (Korean time) at the Georgia Stadium in Atlanta, USA. As of June, FIFA rankings placed Spain second and Cape Verde 67th. Notably, this match marked Cape Verde's World Cup debut.

Spain dominated with 74% ball possession and outshot their opponents 27 to 6, but failed to break through the goal defended by veteran goalkeeper Bociña (Chaves), born in 1986, ending in a scoreless draw. For Spain, which was ranked among the top contenders for the tournament and held a top position in various power rankings ahead of the competition, this humiliating draw was entirely unexpected.

Criticism from local media naturally grew intense. Spain's Marca stated, "All Spanish players looked terrible. They entered the field as if they had already secured a decisive victory," and added, "Even worse, Spain's performance did not improve in the second half."

It further remarked, "Today's match was a sudden disaster that erupted in Atlanta. It was a stage where a miracle in sports occurred, just as a neighborhood gym friend defeated Rafael Nadal. Spain introduced Cape Verde to the world."

Another media outlet, AS, also harshly criticized, stating, "This shocking result overturned all expectations for the Spain national team, which had maintained an almost unbeaten streak for nearly three years," and added, "Today's match became another page added to Spain's history of disasters. The players approached the game with surprising laziness, showing no sense of urgency whatsoever."

The media's anger was fully reflected in player ratings. Unlike other outlets, Marca evaluates player performances using the number of stars (★) rather than numerical scores, with three stars representing the maximum rating. Among the players who started the match, three received no stars at all, while the other six received only one star each. Coach de la Fuente did not receive any stars corresponding to a rating.

Using the same method, AS, which rates players with spades (♠), gave no rating to two of Spain's starting players and only one spade to seven others. Marc Cucurella (Chelsea), who played as the left-sided fullback, was the only player to receive two spades. Spain will face Saudi Arabia on the 22nd and Uruguay on the 27th in the Group H matches 2 and 3.

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*This content was translated by AI.