SAN JOSE: Inma Gabbaro’s stellar effort earned Spain the semifinal ticket in FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup as they edged past Mexico 1-0 in the first quarter-final, here on Saturday.

Gabbaro scored her fifth goal in four appearances at the event. The Sevilla striker now leads Esther Onyenezide, her nearest rival for the Golden Boot, by a margin of two goals.

In addition, Gabarro is one goal short of tying Patricia Guijarro’s mark for the most goals scored by a Spanish player in a single FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

The two teams engaged in a thrilling see-saw battle throughout the game with Gabbaro striking from the box to finish off the low cross and beat Mexican goalkeeper Celeste.

Mexico, on the other hand, failed to claw back their way back into the game after the 25th-minute lead as Spain effectively neutralized their attempts for an equalizer.

With the win, Spain qualified for the first semifinal scheduled on Friday.

Meanwhile, Brazil also confirmed their spot in the semifinal after they beat Columbia by 1-0 in the second quarter-final.

The remaining two semifinalists will be decided after today’s quarter-final matches as the Netherlands will take on Nigeria and Japan will compete against France to book spots in the final four.

The action-filled tournament is being telecasted live on Pakistan’s first HD Sports channel – A Sports and will be simultaneously streamed on the digital platform of ARY Digital Network – ARY ZAP in crystal clear HD quality.

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