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Spain and Brazil played out an entertaining 3-3 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid on Tuesday (March 26), as La Roja relinquished their lead twice in the match.
Only 12 minutes into the kick-off, Rodri put the home side 1-0 up from the penalty spot after Lamine Yamal was brought down inside the area. Dani Olmo doubled their advantage in the 36th minute with a lovely strike from inside the box after skilfully evading a string of yellow shirts.
Spain seemed home and hosed, but Brazil had other plans. A mistake at the back from Unai Simon allowed Rodrygo to pull one back (40') for the Selecao, whereas Endrick made it 2-2 early into the restart (50') with an impressive strike after the Reds failed to clear their corner.
With just three minutes of normal time left, Rodri restored Spain's lead with another penalty, whipping a powerful shot beyond Bento Krepski's reach, but the visitors fought back once again.
Deep into stoppage time, Brazil themselves were the beneficiary of a spot-kick as Daniel Carvajal pulled down Galeno inside the box. Lucas Paqueta stepped up to take it in Neymar's absence and drilled it beyond Simon to make it 3-3 with the last kick of the match.
Brazil and Spain met after nearly 11 years but made sure the wait was worth it.
Here are the five hits and flops from the match:
Hit: Endrick (Brazil)
Just days after scoring the winner against England at Wembley, Endrick strutted his stuff last night at the place he's soon going to call home, the Santiago Bernabeu. The 17-year-old marked his first appearance at Real Madrid's home with a goal.
Five minutes into the second half, Brazil had a corner that Spain failed to clear, and it eventually fell to Endrick, who was unmarked inside the box as the teenager whipped it into the bottom corner.
His shot was perfectly weighted. His accuracy was top-notch. His anticipation in the build-up was excellent. The goal was the perfect encapsulation of the talent that Endrick is, as the boy wonder is set for bigger things in the future.
Flop: Unai Simon (Spain)
Sure, both goalkeepers on the night were helpless and conceded thrice each. But Spain's Unai Simon made a glaring error in the first half that gifted Brazil their first goal.
While attempting to play out from the back, the Athletic Bilbao custodian made a poor pass forward that was intercepted by a vigilant Rodrygo, who was unmarked. The Real Madrid star quickly took a touch before cheekily looping it over Simon to half the deficit for Brazil in the 40th minute.
Hit: Rodri (Spain)
Now onto Spain's hero of the night, Rodri converted two spot-kicks that eventually proved vital in earning them a draw here. The Manchester City star has evolved into a key player for club and country lately, netting several crucial goals, and last night was no different.
He put La Roja 1-0 up in the 12th minute after driving his penalty through the middle. At 2-2, Rodri restored Spain's lead with another penalty in the 87th minute, this time firing it into the left corner to send Bento the wrong way again.
Flop: Vinicius Junior (Brazil)
Playing at his own club's home ground, much was expected of Vinicius Junior, who has continued his blistering run of form this season for Real Madrid (18 goals and eight assists in 28 games). However, instead of lighting up the Bernabeu with some more of his magic, the winger was anonymous for much of the game.
In 71 minutes of action, Vinicius completed only six passes and mustered just one shot on target. He failed to make a single cross, which is startling for a player of his caliber. Having seen him struggle enough, head coach Dorival put Vinicius out of his misery by subbing him off for Douglas Luiz.
Hit: Lamine Yamal (Spain)
17-year-old Endrick wasn't the only youngster who had a great match. Spain's Lamine Yamal, 16, also starred in this game of young talents, bagging an assist for Dani Olmo's strike in the first half.
The Barcelona starlet ran the Brazilian defense ragged with his quick feet and insane skills, as Yamal was simply unplayable on the night. He displayed impeccable vision while his movements were swift, winning a penalty in the first half and laying two key passes as well as six crosses.
His precocious dribbling skills were on full display too, with the teenager attempting nine of them and completing six, while also making a stupendous 11 ball recoveries.
What Endrick is to Brazil, Lamal is to Spain.
