Salma Paralluelo might not have chosen soccer. It was not her only option, certainly. A 19-year-old Spain striker, Paralluelo was a bright prospect in track and field, too, such a gifted runner that she might even have represented her country at the Tokyo Olympics two years ago. Her chosen discipline was the 400 meters. She still holds the national under-20 record at the distance.
She is also, it turns out, just the person her country needed at the end of a marathon.
Spain’s meeting with the Netherlands on Friday in the quarterfinals of this Women’s World Cup was always likely to be close.