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2026 WORLD CUP FINAL: Ferran Torres the hero as Spain defeats Argentina 1-0 in extra time 56%
By Joe Pantorno85%
7/19/2026, 10:01:54 PM
Keywords: World Cup Final, Spain, Argentina, Ferran Torres, Lionel Messi, Extra Time, Metlife Stadium
BS Summary: This article contains 27 faulty reasoning types, including Halo Effect, Negativity Bias, and Availability Heuristic, with Biased Writer Voice as the most egregious example at 51.3% saturation with 585 hits. Analysis detected 2,604 faulty-reasoning hits from 1,140 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 54% and a BS Rank of 56% (8,260 of 18,599 articles). This article is worse (more manipulative) than 55.60% of the article peer group.
Just a stone's throw from the theatre capital of the world on Broadway, Spain was in no mood to follow the scripts that many in the soccer universe wanted it to follow.
Rather than roll over to allow Lionel Messi to ride off into the sunset, La Roja capped off a remarkable campaign to the tune of a 1-0, extra-time victory over 10-man Argentina in the World Cup Final on Sunday evening at MetLife Stadium — just further confirmation that Spain was worthy of the leading role all along.
Substitute Ferran Torres, who came on midway through the second half, found the winner in the 106th minute, when he cannoned a brilliant cut-back header from Nico Williams into the roof of the goal to spark frenzied celebrations from the Spanish bench in the left corner.
"Happiness must feel like this," Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente said.
"We feel pride, satisfaction, recognition for great people, great footballers.
This group will go down in history, and it is an honor to work with them."
It is La Roja's second World Cup title ever, the first coming in South Africa 16 years ago, making it the seventh nation ever with multiple titles, and extending a historic run of form in the process.
With the result, Spain has set a new world record with its 38th straight match without a loss, breaking the mark set by Italy (37) from 2018 to 2021.
Even more remarkably, Spain allowed just one goal in eight matches at this World Cup.
Argentina played the final 36 minutes down a man after midfielder Enzo Fernandez was shown a second yellow card in a 10-minute stretch for a crunching tackle on Spain's 19-year-old defender, Pau Cubarsi.
And on a day in which it struggled to see much of the ball, going down a man meant certain death.
Fernandez was initially booked for dissent in the 82nd minute.
La Albiceleste became the first team in World Cup Final history not to attempt a single shot in regulation time, seeing its first attempt come in the 117th minute with a deflected Messi shot that caromed off the head of Mikel Merino.
In the 122nd minute off a corner, Giuliano Simeone blazed a golden chance from inside the box well over the crossbar.
It was as cagy a match as ever seen in a World Cup Final, and one that brought back poor memories of the 1994 Final in the United States, which finished 0-0 between Brazil and Italy and decided on penalties.
The largest chance of the opening half came in the fifth minute when Lamine Yamal — after playing a 1-2 with Dani Olmo — had a close-range effort from the right side of the box deflected and saved by the feet of goalkeeper Emi Martinez.
His effort counted for the only shot in the opening 25 minutes — the fewest in such an opening span at a World Cup Final since 1966 (England vs.
West Germany).
Spain controlled the majority of play, pinning the ball in large stretches in the Argentinian end.
Mikel Oyarzabal finally recorded a second shot on target, though the long-range effort was no trouble for Martinez 39 minutes in.
Left back Marc Cucurella showed a bit of gumption himself with a long-range effort in the 43rd minute, but his low shot from the left rolled just wide of the right post.
In the 66th minute, just before the hydration break and after a series of non-threatening corners and half-chances, Spain's Ferran Torres was able to nod a cross from six yards out, but right at Martinez.
Argentina's defense was particularly commendable, given that it had to change both center-backs by the 67th minute.
Manchester United's Lisandro Martinez picked up an injury just before halftime, and Cristian Romero had to be subbed off at the hydration break for an injury of his own, for Facundo Medina.
"We had many setbacks today with injuries in key positions that we weren’t expecting," Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni said.
"We had to substitute three out of four defenders.
It’s no excuse, but the wear has been immense.
Our players have tried to get here in the best possible way.
But when you’re facing a team like Spain, if you’re not absolutely fit, you might suffer."
The pressure was constant, even if the chances were not golden.
Argentina's midfield was overrun by Spain's pressure, rendering the likes of Messi and Fernandez nearly invisible.
"The first idea was to keep Messi at bay, but also other players," de la Fuente said.
"We wanted to keep them away from our goal.
Thanks to our technical approach from our staff, they carefully scouted Argentina… Something very important was the attitude of our players.
We were convinced that this was our final… I think it was a very complete game."
Off a short corner, substitute Nico Williams' cross from the right touchline was headed on by Aymeric Laporte at the left post, but Martinez was there.
Things came alive in the final minutes of regulation.
Argentina had a rare chance off a Messi free kick that was worked into a harmless cross.
Spain goalkeeper Unai Simón played it quickly to start the counter-attack, which began with Williams.
After an initial wave was quelled, a loose ball was won by Pau Cubarsi, who was clattered into by Fernandez well after he got rid of the ball — a second yellow resulting in his expulsion from the match in the third minute of extra time.
Spain won a free kick from 25 yards out in the eighth minute of stoppage time, but Yamal's free kick was pawed away well by Martinez at his left post.
Williams surely had a winner in the 93rd minute when he flicked on a cross that seemed destined for the inside of the left post, but Martinez remarkably got a hand in to push it wide.
The Spanish winger found the back of the net in the 96th minute when he deflected a cross that was then flicked by Merino while backing into defender Nicolas Otamendi.
While Otamendi went down, Martinez spilled the ball into the path of Williams, who slotted it home, but celebrations were immediately cut short by the referee's whistle — yet another controversial call went the way of Argentina.
Merino glanced a header just wide in the 103rd minute, and the defending champions dipped into every tactic possible in the book to waste as much time as possible to get to penalties, though it all came undone in the 106th minute when Yamal sent in a cross that found Williams at the back post, which the Athletic Bilbao was able to nod back to an on-rushing Torres for the winner.
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