Yamal rejoices following his goal against France at Euro 2024
Yamal made history at the European Championships by scoring a sensational goal in the 21st minute of Spain's thrilling 2-1 victory over France in the semifinals.
At just 16 years old, Yamal received the ball near the opposition's goal area and calmly positioned himself for a left-footed strike. His shot curled elegantly past French goalkeeper Mike Maignan, grazing the inside of the left post before finding the back of the net.
This momentous goal shattered a longstanding record previously held by Switzerland's Johan Vonlathen since 2004. Vonlathen had been 18 years and 141 days old when he scored against France, shortly after England's Wayne Rooney had set the youngest goal-scorer record. Yamal, who turns 17 on July 13, surpassed both these milestones with his remarkable achievement.
Prior to his historic goal, the rising star from Barcelona had already been instrumental for Spain throughout Euro 2024. Featuring in all six of Spain's matches and starting five of them, Yamal had displayed his talent by providing an assist in their tournament opener against Croatia and contributing assists in each of Spain's initial two knockout stage matches.
Yamal's equalizing goal in the semifinal leveled the score at 1-1 after France's Randal Kolo Muani had put his team ahead. Spain's momentum continued, and shortly after Yamal's goal, defender Jules Kounde inadvertently deflected a ball from Dani Olmo into France's goal, securing a 2-1 lead for Spain in the 25th minute, a lead they would maintain until the final whistle.
