Golazo from Dani Olmo against Turkey; Cubarsí repeated in Spain's XI

Spain sealed their qualification for the 2026 World Cup with a 2-2 draw against Turkey, again with two FC Barcelona players as starters. Pau Cubarsí was once again in the center of defense alongside Aymeric Laporte, while Dani Olmo accompanied Yéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in La Roja's attacking trident.

The Terrassa native opened the scoring in the 4th minute with a notable cross-shot and was Spain's best player in the first half. In total, the Barça attacking midfielder, wearing the '10' jersey at La Cartuja, played 74 minutes in which he completed 3 shots on goal, 45 out of 50 passes (90%), and created a couple of chances.

Olmo also recovered a couple of balls and now has 12 goals and 10 assists in 46 official matches with the National Team. **Fermín López** came on in his place with a quarter of an hour left, while **Ferran Torres** did the same after halftime, replacing Mikel Merino.

Ferran and Fermín Added Minutes Against Turkey

The 'Shark' returned to the bench after shining in the thrashing against Georgia (he scored and assisted in the 0-4 win). Although he was very active in attack in the final stretch, the Valencian forward lacked accuracy to give Spain victory.

The '7' had two clear chances towards the end of the match, but wasn't sharp in his finishing. He also completed 14 out of 17 passes (82%) during the second 45 minutes, in addition to winning one individual duel and recovering a ball during the high press.

Ferrmín, for his part, won a couple of duels in the quarter of an hour he was on the field, although he could not shoot on goal or complete dribbles against the Turkish defense. The Huelva native also played 28 minutes against Georgia, with a little more spark in attack.

Cubarsí had a complicated night at La Cartuja

The day was much more complex for Pau Cubarsí. Unlike the match in Georgia, where the defense practically had no work, at La Cartuja the Turks imposed their physical strength to hurt the center-backs of La Roja.

Both Laporte (he ended up bleeding after an elbow from Gül) and the Barça defender (he received a strong blow to the head while contesting an aerial ball with Yilmaz) had a tough time in a first half where both were caught out before halftime on a corner that ended in a goal by Gül

Spain had not conceded any goals throughout the qualifying rounds and, on Tuesday, they were trailing for eight minutes in the second half. Cubarsí played the full 90 minutes and came close to scoring with a header in first-half stoppage time, following a brilliant play by Fabián Ruiz.

Once again, the Barça center-back looked impeccable in possession, completing 100 out of 103 passes (97%) and recovering the ball 6 times. For now, Robin Le Normand retains his starting position, but Pau has more than enough quality to fight for the spot with the Atlético defender from now until the start of the World Cup next June.

• On FCBN you can follow the progress of all the international players from FC Barcelona live during the FIFA date.