Spain traveled to victory in their Women’s World Cup opener as they dominated Costa Rica in Wellington.
Aitana Bonmati added a second two minutes later after Valeria del Campo scored an own goal to give Spain the lead.
Esther Gonzalez added a third after a header against the crossbar by Jennifer Hermoso, who then had a penalty saved by Daniela Solera.
Solera made a number of excellent saves as Olga Carmona hit the bar, limiting Spain to three goals.
The match statistics demonstrated the Spanish team’s dominance: they made 46 goal, 12 of which were target, while Costa Rica, ranked 36th in the world, only managed one shot, which was wide.
Additionally, Spain had 22 corners and 80% possession, while their opponents had only one.
After a disrupted tournament buildup, Spain’s perfect start to their Group C campaign was this one, with the goal of reaching the last 16 for the first time.
In September, the Spanish Football Alliance (RFEF) guaranteed 15 members from its national team, discontent with preparing techniques and match preparation, said they would leave on the off chance that director Jorge Vilda didn’t aerobics.
The alliance upheld Vilda and he really at that time named three of those 15 players – Barcelona’s Mariona Caldentey, Bonmati and Ona Batlle – On the planet Cup crew.
Costa Rica had never dominated a game at a Women’s World Cup, however had attracted 1-1 their opener against Spain in 2015 – the main other competition they had equipped for.
But Spain’s dominance meant that there was never a chance of a repeat.
Bonmati, Gonzalez, Ivana Andres and Salma Paralluelo all missed chances before Del Campo accidentally converted Gonzalez’s cross from the left.
Spain scored multiple times in a seven-minute spell and had an extraordinary chance for a fourth however Hermoso’s unfortunate punishment was driven away by Solera.
Just a propelled execution from Solera kept the scoreline decent as she made incredible recoveries to deny Paralluelo, Carmona and Ivana Andres.
Midfielder Alexia Putellas, who won the Ballon d’Or for being the best player on the planet in 2021 and 2022, was among the Spain substitutes and played the most recent 13 minutes as she recuperates from injury.
She supported a serious knee injury not long before last year’s Women’s’ European Title and has not played a full match since.
Spain will be searching for one more large win in their next match on 26 July as they face Zambia, at 77th the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, with Costa Rica facing 2011 champs and 2015 runners-up Japan.