Unai Simon surpasses Zenga's World Cup record and extends his streak to 519 minutes

Since conceding that goal, the Spanish keeper has not let in another strike in any World Cup match. At the ongoing World Cup in the United States, he improved his statistics with additional clean sheets: Spain defeated, among others, Saudi Arabia 4:0.

Simon also played the full duration in the match against Cape Verde. The game ended 0:0, allowing his personal clean-sheet streak to continue growing. Further along in the tournament, the Round of 16 clash with Austria awaited.

In the Round of 16 against the ÖFB team, Simon extended his clean sheet further. Spain won 3:0, the goalkeeper did not concede – surpassing Zenga's old mark.

The previous record, however, was set under special circumstances. At the home World Cup in Italy, Zenga had gone the full distance without conceding in matches that included a penalty shootout against Ireland and extra time against Uruguay.

Record in context

The Spanish side, meanwhile, had been eliminated at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in the Round of 16 against Morocco after a 0:0 draw that went to a penalty shootout – Simon was unable to prevent a concession over 120 minutes in that match, but the tournament ended for Spain.

In the ongoing tournament, the Spanish team has advanced to the quarterfinals after the clear victory over Austria. Should Simon continue to keep clean sheets, his mark could be extended further in the upcoming matches.

Significance of the statistic

The record figure refers exclusively to final tournament World Cup matches. Friendlies, qualifiers, or league matches are not counted in this statistic. Tournaments such as the European Championship or the Nations League also do not factor into the calculation.

For Simon personally, the record is another milestone in an already successful career. Before taking over the Spanish national goalkeeper position on a permanent basis, he had established himself as a regular at FC Bilbao and was also active in European competition.

The native Basque enjoys a reputation in Spain as a technically strong and ball-secure goalkeeper, who stands out less through spectacular saves than through constant presence and clean positioning.

With the new record, Simon joins a line of legendary goalkeepers who rose above themselves at World Cups. Spain's upcoming opponents will now be especially motivated to bring exactly this streak to an end.