Spain 1 0 Uruguay: A soft shot, a three year old parking lot, and two teams in critical condition

In the 42nd minute at the Akron Stadium in Guadalajara. Alex Baena lifted a soft, weak shot. 40-year-old Muslera reached for it, but the ball slipped through his palm and into the net.

The man who put the ball into the net almost got punched in the face by another Uruguayan in the Bernabéu parking lot three years ago.

After Real Madrid's 2-3 home loss to Villarreal in the league in April 2023, Federico Valverde cornered Baena in the parking area and punched him in the face. The alleged cause was Baena making a joke about Valverde's unborn son. Baena filed a police report afterwards. In the Madrid derby this March, Valverde launched a tackle from behind, sending Baena flying and earning a straight red card. Before the match, Baena went on COPE radio and compressed the bloody feud into a single sentence: "We respect each other."

Respect is for the cameras; on the pitch, it's all about putting the boot in. Llorente crossed from the right, Baena wound up and fired in the box, and Muslera let a ball he should have easily held slip through. After scoring, Baena sprinted to the corner flag, while Valverde was substituted shortly after. Bielsa explained afterwards, "I took him off to strengthen the defense." Spanish newspaper Sport directly contradicted him: Bielsa knows he has to leave anyway, he just brought the conflict into the open after kick-off.

Peel back the 1-0 façade, and Spain's win was incredibly ugly. Six shots in the entire match, with Baena's effort being the only one on target. Possession stats ranged from 53% to 67% depending on the outlet. No matter which metric you use, the group leader managing just one shot on target is called survival. All that ball possession polished to a shine still couldn't mask the constipation in the attack.

Oyarzabal started his third consecutive match, delivering a disastrous stat line: 33 touches, 15 passes, 0 dribbles, 13 turnovers. He wasn't even on the pitch for the goal, standing on the sideline receiving treatment. Subbed off for Ferran Torres in the 76th minute, surprising no one. De la Fuente's plan was shrewd: use Llorente to lock down the right flank, staking everything on "not conceding." Zero goals conceded in three group matches – the defense is rock solid. But the offensive hole is leaking. Nico Williams came off the bench and soon went down clutching his leg, a suspected muscle injury. Yeremy Pino is suspected to have a broken collarbone. De la Fuente admitted after the match, "Yeremy probably can't play, and Nico is uncomfortable too," then added, "I hope we can play some normal games next."

Both wingers are down simultaneously. Five goals total in three group matches, with four of them coming in the second match's 4-0 rout of Saudi Arabia, a 0-0 draw with Cape Verde in the first, and the 1-0 win over Uruguay in the final. 67% possession, Yamal hit the post, Ferran Torres smashed the crossbar at the death. Dominant in possession, lucky too, but just can't score. The European champion's attack completely fizzled out on the Mexican plateau.

Uruguay paid an even bloodier price. Ugarte twisted his ankle in a first-half challenge and was stretchered off in the 45th minute. In stoppage time, Canobbio flew into a tackle on Cubarsí, and the referee showed a straight red card. Afterwards, Canobbio vented his sorrows to the FIFA camera: "What am I supposed to say after elimination?" "I didn't show my studs." "We were on top in the first two rounds, but that's the World Cup."

Guadalajara sits at an altitude of approximately 1560 meters. Oxygen debt, combined with Bielsa's high-intensity pressing system that treats players like consumables, drained the Uruguayan players' energy tanks completely. The team committed 13 fouls, and their play got dirtier in the second half. Canobbio's horror tackle was purely a technical breakdown from physical exhaustion. High-pressing in a tournament format with high altitude is suicide. Bielsa's system can survive in club football with rotation, but in the World Cup, it will run old legs into the ground. Eliminated in the group stage for two consecutive World Cups. In 2022, they had 4 points from one win, going out on goals scored; in 2026, 2 points from zero wins, this time not even a fig leaf to cover their shame.

Asked about substituting captain Muslera at half-time, Bielsa spat out, "The player asked for it himself."

40 years old. At 39 years and 364 days, he surpassed Godín to become the oldest Uruguayan to play in a World Cup. His fifth World Cup. Muslera's last dance ended with a goalkeeping error and being substituted at half-time. It was the first time in Uruguay's history that a goalkeeper was substituted during a World Cup match. He had just celebrated his 40th birthday 11 days earlier. The birthday gift had been opened early – a flight ticket back to Montevideo.

As for Spain, they head to face Austria with a depleted wing corps and their group stage luck used up. All De la Fuente can do now is pray his defense doesn't suffer a sudden power outage in the knockout rounds.