Oyarzabal: Spain’s silent assassin
The Real Sociedad skipper is enjoying a rich vein of form with his national team and heads into the FIFA World Cup 2026 as Luis de la Fuente’s preferred attacking ace.
Mikel Oyarzabal has racked up 11 goals and six assists in his last ten Spain caps
Real Sociedad captain scored the winner in the UEFA EURO 2024 final
Frontman is set to make his FIFA World Cup debut at the age of 29
Mikel Oyarzabal netted the goal that secured victory for Spain in the UEFA EURO 2024 final and has enjoyed a magnificent past 12 months in action for La Roja. Next on the agenda is to lace up his shooting boots for Luis de la Fuente’s side at the FIFA World Cup 2026™. He is preparing to make his competition debut, having missed out on Qatar 2022™ due to a knee injury.
Oyarzabal’s international career truly took off on 23 March 2025. Prior to the UEFA Nations League quarter-final clash against the Netherlands a year ago, the forward had found the back of the net on 13 occasions in 42 games. However, in the ten outings since then, he has added a further 11 goals to his overall tally, a spectacular uptick in his output that bodes well for the upcoming FIFA World Cup™.
The Basque native's rich vein of form has also put him among Spain’s top ten goalscorers of all time. He currently sits ninth, on 24 goals in 52 games, within striking distance of three legends: Emilio Butragueno (26), Fernando Morientes (27) and Fernando Hierro (27).
“I never imagined getting to this point, but you’re always hungry for more. You always want to keep pushing. I’m just happy that my goals are helping the team win matches,” said Oyarzabal following his brace in the friendly against Serbia on 27 March.
Another string to the Spaniard’s bow is that he is one of De la Fuente’s most trusted technicians, having played under the coach at U-19, U-21, Olympic and senior levels. With EURO 2024 talisman Alvaro Morata left out of the latest squad, Oyarzabal is expected to spearhead the Spanish attack at the global showpiece. The 2010 champions will get the ball rolling in Atlanta with games against Cabo Verde and Saudi Arabia, before their sojourn in Monterrey to take on Uruguay.
The Eibar academy protégé joined Real Sociedad in summer 2011, rising through the ranks to establish himself as a club captain and Txuri-Urdin icon, where he has registered an impressive 129 goals in 428 appearances.
Having quietly accrued the fourth-highest number of international caps among the members of De la Fuente’s most recent squad – only surpassed by Ferran Torres, Unai Simon and Rodri – Oyarzabal has burnished his reputation as Spain’s silent assassin and a key leader on the pitch.
“He does everything well. If you asked me who has the ability to go on to become a coach, I’d say Mikel Oyarzabal. He has such a deep understanding of the game. He knows how to play between the lines, how to lose his marker. Sometimes we fail to appreciate what we have. If he played for another country, they‘d be celebrating a star player. And that’s just what he is,” enthused his national-team coach following the friendly victory over Serbia in the build-up to the World Cup.
Whilst he might not have headline writers salivating to the same degree as the likes of Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe, Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi when it comes to the big guns at this FIFA World Cup, Oyarzabal has so much more than goals in his locker.
He also operates as a technical playmaker in the final third and is capable of playing across the front line. Do not let his mild-mannered demeanour fool you. His roaring form and devastating numbers in front of goal over the past year have made him a key player to watch this northern summer.