In the final stages, he appeared in five matches (three as a late substitute): on 7 July, in the semi-final against Germany, he started in place of Torres, who had been performing poorly in earlier matches. In the 82nd minute, with Spain leading 1–0, he attempted to score a goal himself rather than set up an unmarked Torres, although he performed well in the game. Despite this error, he was selected to start in the final, with the national team winning 1–0 against the Netherlands; at the hour-mark, he was replaced by Jesús Navas.