Match Summary

England Team

Spain Team

England began their challenge for the newly arranged European Nations League with a home game against a Spanish side that had struggled during the World Cup in Russia through the summer.  England had had a good tournament in many ways, although the team had lost their previous two games and they didn’t really want to lose three in a row.  Spain came with a new manager and plenty of talent, and that was to test England to the full.

The match began at a high tempo and England started well. After just eleven minutes play they took a deserved lead, and what a fine goal it was. Harry Kane picked the ball up inside his own half and sprayed a delightful pass out to the left.  Luke Shaw was galloping down the wing and hit a superb crossfield pass into the penalty area towards his Manchester United colleague Marcus Rashford.  The young forward didn’t hesitate and fired a fine goal past another United teammate David de Gea.  It was an excellent goal, well worked, and the crowd were buzzing.  However, the excitement lasted barely two minutes, and in that moment the game was probably won and lost.

Spain attacked down the right and this time Shaw was at fault as he dived in too early as Daniel Carvajal skipped past him and down the wing before passing to Machado Rodrigo. He pulled the ball back and there was Niguez Saul to blast the ball past Jordan Pickford. Harry Maguire’s desperate lunge couldn’t stop the player scoring and it was so infuriating that England conceded so quickly after going ahead. The goal led to a period of dominance from Spain who were quickly showing that they had more than recovered from their miserable World Cup. In Thiago Alcantara they had the game’s best midfield player and he controlled proceedings for a while. The pressure from the visitors grew and on the half hour they completed the turnaround by taking the lead.

Kieran Trippier gave away a needless free-kick wide on the left, and when the ball was whipped into the penalty area by Thiago the England defenders stood like statues as Rodrigo nipped in to score with ease. It was a very poor goal to concede from England’s point of view and this is something that is increasingly happening, giving away sloppy goals.

To be fair, England then hit back and a few minutes later Rashford headed what seemed a certain equaliser from Jesse Lingard’s cross, only for de Gea to produce a wonder save to claw the ball away from goal. It was a magnificent save but if you want to be ultra-critical, then it has to be said that Rashford should have buried the golden chance.

The game continued with the high intensity from both sides but there were few clear opportunities in the remaining time before the break and Spain’s lead was still intact as the half-time whistle sounded.

The game was set for a rousing second-half, but sadly that didn’t happen, and it was largely down to a sickening incident two minutes after the restart. Shaw and Carvajal went for the same ball and collided leaving Shaw out cold. The medics all rushed on and the crowd fell silent as it looked a very serious injury to the full-back. Shaw had six minutes of treatment before being stretchered off and the player has certainly had his fair share of injuries over recent years, especially when with the England team. Understandably the players from both sides were visibly shaken by the incident and that was reflected in much of the remainder of the half.

England never really threatened and Spain, so comfortable in possession, strolled through the next half-hour without any alarms. It wasn’t until the 80th minute that England created another worthwhile goal attempt. Once again Rashford was the man on the spot, and he really should have given de Gea no chance to save as he burst through on goal. Once more though, he fired too close to the keeper and de Gea was able to save with his leg.

I’m not sure if it is me, but when England play we never seem to have the rub of the green in too many games. A last gasp chance to equalise just about summed up what I’m saying.

The ball was lobbed into the middle where substitute Danny Welbeck was looking to make a challenge. Two Spanish defenders held him off, some say unfairly, as de Gea came to collect the high ball. As the goalkeeper clattered into Welbeck he dropped the ball. Welbeck reacted quickly and turned the loose ball over the line for what seemed a late equalising goal. It seemed a perfectly good goal too, there was no foul by Welbeck, and everyone in the stadium saw it as a legitimate goal, except for the one man that mattered, the referee! He gave the non-existent foul and the goal was ruled out. I have never been a fan of those extra officials behind the goals, and this was a perfect excuse to get rid of them once and for all. That official behind de Gea’s goal was standing not three feet away from the incident, so how he saw a foul only he could tell us.

Overall Spain probably just about deserved the points, although it could be argued that England could and should have had a draw. Some players are still not firing on all cylinders after the long summer, and there was definitely an element of early season rustiness. Having said that, there were some positives to take from the game, although these silly defensive errors must be banished, especially against teams as good as Spain were. Their new manager was delighted by their all-round performance. Gareth Southgate, conversely, will have lots to ponder before the next few games.
 

Source Notes