Aitana Bonmati netted two well-crafted goals as Spain thrashed Switzerland 5-1 at the Women’s World Cup on Saturday to clinch a quarter-final berth for the first time in their history.
Switzerland kept three clean sheets to top Group A, but it took a mere five minutes for midfielder Bonmati to breach their defence for the first goal for La Roja.
Additional goals from her, Alba Redondo, Laia Codina and Jenni Hermoso completed the rout to the delight of the crowd of 43,217 – a record for a soccer game in New Zealand, women or men.
Bonmati, Redondo and Hermoso all now have three goals in the tournament.
Codina’s 45th-minute effort was a moment of redemption for the defender, who had earlier scored a calamitous own goal with a pass back from 40 yards that sailed past shocked keeper Cata Coll.
The match saw 43,217 spectators inside the Eden Park Outer Oval in Auckland, in what was a record attendance for a women’s or men’s game in New Zealand
Spain finished second in Group C, beating Costa Rica and Zambia by a combined 8-0 before being run ragged in a surprise 4-0 loss to Japan on Monday.
Coach Jorge Vilda made five changes to his team from that loss for Saturday, including dropping goalkeeper Maria Rodriguez in favour of Coll.
The Spaniards will now play the winner of Sunday’s round of 16 game between the Netherlands and South Africa.
The 20th-ranked Swiss matched their best World Cup finish. They also bowed out in the round of 16 in their only other World Cup appearance in 2015.
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