A clinical and disciplined Spain advanced to their first FIFA World Cup final in 16 years after beating neighbors France 2-0 in a high-octane semifinal clash at the AT&T Stadium on Tuesday. A first-half penalty from Mikel Oyarzabal and a brilliant second-half strike from Pedro Porro sealed a memorable victory for La Roja, crushing France’s dreams of reaching a third straight final.The victory marked the third consecutive summer that Spain eliminated France in the final stage of a major tournament, following their triumphs in the Euro 2024 semifinals and last year’s Nations League. Teenage sensation Lamine Yamal, who celebrated his 19th birthday just a day ago, proved to be the architect of destruction once again, confirming his pre-match warning that France should fear this Spanish side.Spain opened the scoring in the 22nd minute after Yamal’s agility prevented the French defense. French veteran defender Lucas Digne misjudged a header in his own box, allowing a sprinting Yamal to steal in from behind. In a desperate attempt to clear the danger, Digne kicked the teenager, prompting the referee to point straight to the penalty area.Mikel Oyarzabal calmly stepped up and sent the goalkeeper the wrong way to get his fifth goal of the tournament. The strike marks the first time the heavyweight nation has withdrawn at any point in the entire World Cup campaign.France, the world’s top-ranked team, struggled to find their usual rhythm as Kylian Mbappé was silenced by a strong Spanish backline. Spain completely took the game away from Les Bleus in the 58th minute. Pedro Porro started a nice give-and-go passing sequence with Dani Olmo before driving a powerful shot into the net to make it 2-0.Yamal almost added a third moments later, but his close-range finish was ruled out by a strict offside call. France threw bodies forward late in the game but failed to breach Spain’s organized defence.Spain will now travel to East Rutherford, New Jersey, for Sunday’s grand finale at MetLife Stadium, where they will face defending champion Argentina or England. On the other hand, a disappointed French team will head to Miami Gardens this Saturday to compete in the third place playoff match.