A clean sheet through the whole group
Spain won Group H and did not concede once. They drew 0-0 with Cape Verde, beat Saudi Arabia 4-0 and edged Uruguay 1-0. Only one game was a rout; the rest were about control and a back line that gave nothing away. Austria took the opposite road out of Group J. They beat Jordan 3-1, lost 2-0 to Argentina, then drew a wild 3-3 with Algeria. Six goals scored, six conceded — their games kept moving.
The wall against the shootout
The styles pull against each other. Spain's edge is the clean sheet and the way they manage a game so the opponent never gets a run at it. Austria can score when there is space, but they have shown gaps at the back. Can Austria's attack find a way through a side that hasn't been breached, or does Spain close the game down and keep it on their terms?
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