MATCH REPORT | Spain break their jinx and reach the semi-finals (2-1)

More than a hundred years after its birth, the Spanish national team has achieved something it had been denied in 758 previous matches: to win and knock the hosts out of a major international competition.

Luis de la Fuente and his team achieved it on this Friday at the Stuttgart Arena, where thousands of Spaniards never stopped cheering on a team that has become one for the ages and that ended up silencing the German fans.

Against the hosts, the coach opted to go with the same starting eleven from the Last 16 match against Georgia, but soon the circumstances forced the gaffer from La Rioja into making changes to his gameplans.

Germany's excessive aggressiveness in the early minutes led to Pedri's injury after a heavy tackle by Toni Kroos, which saw the Tenerife player go off with a knee injury.

Dani Olmo took his place in the starting line-up, and the player’s contribution was to prove decisive in the end, as was that of goalkeeper Unai Simón, who saved a header from Havertz in Die Mannschaft's first dangerous chance.

The duel of maximum quality, emotion, intensity and the match winning moment fell to Spain in the last minute of extra time.

Germany dealt with Spain's aerial play and possession play well, but succumbed to effective pressure after losing the ball and the teams went in level at half-time after a tight first half.

Shortly after the restart, the deadlock was broken when Lamine Yamal played a low pass into the run of a lethal Dani Olmo, voted man of the match, who slotted a right-footed shot beyond Neuer's reach.

The goal spurred on the Germans, who put all their attacking muscle on the Stuttgart pitch with the gigantic Füllkrug, bringing back terrible memories for Spain from the World Cup, and the talented Florian Wirtz playing evasively between the lines.

Füllkrug hit the post, Unai pulled off a monumental save from Andrich, and then Carvajal, who was sent off late on for a second yellow and is suspended for the semi-finals like Le Normand, was to prove decisive block late on in normal time.

With two minutes to go, however, no one could prevent an equaliser from Nagelsmann's side's umpteenth cross, with Kimmich's pass falling to Wirtz, who scored with an unstoppable volley.

The goal drove the local fans wild as Spain dug deep to take the match to extra time and then rallied in extra time to come out on top of a topsy-turvy match.

Oyarzabal and Wirtz came close, but with a minute to go before penalties, Dani Olmo paused and worked a miracle with a precise ball that Navara born Mikel Merino put into the German goal on the eve of his region's celebrations, San Fermín. It seems the celebrations may come a day early this year.

The slice of luck that Spain needed was still to appear though, then it did when a last-ditch close-range header from an unmarked Füllkrug nearly stopped the Germans and Toni Kroos from packing their bags.

Wherever they are, more than a century later, the Antwerp pioneers were surely smiling with gratitude that the hosts' jinx is now part of the annals of history. France or Portugal await next Tuesday's semi-final in Munich and this side continues making history together.