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Oyarzábal Cements Spain’s No. 9 Role With Serbia Brace, Five-Game Streak

Luis de la Fuente’s switch to center forward has turned the Real Sociedad captain into his era’s top scorer.

Overview

  • Mikel Oyarzábal’s brace against Serbia lifted him to 24 goals for Spain and five straight scoring games, leaving him one shy of David Villa’s record.
  • Luis de la Fuente moved him from the wing to center forward, and he now leads the coach’s tenure with 18 international goals.
  • The upcoming Egypt match in Cornellà offers the next chance to extend the run, though his minutes have not been confirmed.
  • At Real Sociedad he is captain with 126 goals, which ranks second on the club’s all-time list behind Jesús Satrustegui.
  • Coaches and teammates describe a quiet leader who steadies a young squad, and De la Fuente even backs him as a coach in the future.