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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Sid Lowe in Dallas

Let’s talk about Mikel Oyarzabal: Spain’s quiet man forced into the limelight

Mikel Oyarzabal kisses the football in celebration of his opening goal for Spain against Austria
Mikel Oyarzabal dedicates his opening goal for Spain against Austria to his pregnant partner. Photograph: Étienne Laurent/AFP/Getty Images

We have to talk about Mikel Oyarzabal. When Spain scored their third goal against Austria in Los Angeles, cameras caught Lamine Yamal’s little brother celebrating, fists clenched and shouting “come on!”. The picture couldn’t have been more perfect, and not just because Keyne is impossibly cute. Even the apparent imperfection was just right. On the row below, clapping and half-hiding the three-year-old, was a woman in sunglasses, prompting a Spanish TV commentator to post: “The blonde in front has denied us the best sticker of all time.” To which the striker Borja Iglesias replied: “The blonde in front has given you two goals today, my friend.”

Turns out the blonde woman is Oyarzabal’s mum: her name is Dorleta and it was her son who had just scored his second goal of the game and his fourth of the tournament. Two days later, after the Selección had finished their first training session in Dallas, Marca asked Oyarzabal if he had seen the footage.

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