MEXICO CITY, June 21 (Xinhua) -- Spain's Lamine Yamal scored on his first World Cup start while Cabo Verde boosted its knockout hopes and Iran held Belgium at the FIFA World Cup on Sunday.
In Atlanta, Yamal scored within 10 minutes as Spain cruised to a 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia. The 18-year-old forward fired in at the back post after Mikel Oyarzabal's cross to become the eighth youngest scorer in the tournament's history.
Real Sociedad forward Oyarzabal also struck two first-half goals before Hassan Altambakti gifted the reigning European champion a fourth by inadvertently turning the ball into his own net just after halftime.
"I've always dreamed of being at a World Cup, and being able to score in my first match as a starter is a dream," Yamal said. "I watched the last World Cup from a classroom, so being able to score here with my mum and my family in the stands is a dream come true."
In Miami Gardens, Helio Varela scored a second-half equalizer as Cabo Verde earned a 2-2 draw with Uruguay.
Kevin Pina gave the African side an early lead before Maximiliano Araujo and Agustin Canobbio struck late in the first half for Uruguay.
Varela put his team on level terms by intercepting an errant defensive pass and slotting a shot beyond Fernando Muslera.
The result came after Cabo Verde secured its first World Cup point against Spain in their tournament opener and raised hopes of a possible berth in the round of 32.
Spain now leads Group H with four points, while Uruguay and Cabo Verde each has two points from two rounds. Saudi Arabia is last in the group with one point.
Spain will meet Uruguay in Guadalajara on Friday while Cabo Verde will play Saudi Arabia in their final group stage match in Houston.
"I want to congratulate the team and all of our people for the way we played, with our hearts," Cabo Verde head coach Bubista said.
"We finished the match under a lot of difficulty, with many players already suffering from cramps. But our team was brave throughout, always looking to win the game, and that makes us very happy."
His Uruguay counterpart, Marcelo Bielsa, lamented the result, which followed a 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabia.
"We know we have two draws, two matches that we could have won, we should have been able to win," the 70-year-old Argentine told reporters.
"There's no doubt we deserved to win the match with Saudi Arabia and also the match today as well. We should have won it. Even with the goals that we conceded, we should have won still."
Elsewhere, Iran pulled off one of the surprises of the group stage so far by holding 10-man Belgium to a goalless draw in Los Angeles.
Defender Nathan Ngoy was sent off in the 66th minute when he miscued a backpass and then pulled down Mehdi Taremi when the striker was through on goal.
Belgium controlled almost 60 percent of the possession and the best of the scoring chances, but could not find a way past goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand, who made seven saves.
"He's one of our greatest goalkeepers in the history of Iranian football, and he has achieved many things," Iran head coach Amir Ghalenoei said. "He's extremely intelligent, very experienced, and he had one of his best days today."
Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who was also impressive with three saves, praised Beiranvand but said his team remained upbeat.
"I think in general, we played quite a good game," Courtois said. "Obviously, you can always find things you'd like to do better. We had enough chances to score, and we didn't score. Their goalkeeper played a great game."
The result leaves Belgium third in Group G with two points, behind Iran by virtue of having scored fewer goals.
In Vancouver, Egypt recovered from a goal down to cruise to a 3-1 win over New Zealand.
Finn Surman put the Oceania side ahead with a powerful header, but Mostafa Zico, Mohamed Salah and Trezeguet netted second half goals as Egypt sealed its first win of the tournament. The African team leads Group G with four points, three ahead of last-placed New Zealand. ■
