Spain beat Croatia 4-1 in Seville to secure their second straight victory in the Nations League group stage. Lamine Yamal scored twice, while Marc Pubil and Nico Williams each added one for the hosts.
The match at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium started with a quick goal for the Spanish side. In the second minute, Yamal received the ball after a combination between Alex Baena and Fermin Lopez and with a flick of the ball he sent the ball past Dominik Livakovic.
Croatia equalized in the 27th minute. Ivan Perišić crossed into the penalty area, and Dion Belgeau fought off Dean Heusen and headed home to make it 1-1.
However, the tie only lasted three minutes. Yamal crossed from the right, and Marc Pubil was left uncovered and headed Spain back into the lead. The hosts had several more chances before the break, including a shot by Fermin López that hit the post.
Yamal decided the match after the break
Spain continued to control the tempo and reached the third goal in the 63rd minute. Pedri brought Yamal into the penalty area, and the striker shot diagonally and beat Livakovic for the second time.
Nico Williams made the final score in the 89th minute. He entered the penalty area and with a shot to the far corner, left no chance for the Croatian goalkeeper.
According to „El Pais“ Yamal was directly involved in three of Spain's four goals. The publication also notes that the first goal came after a long combination of 25 passes, which ended with the striker's shot.
Spanish coach Luis de la Fuente made five changes to the squad compared to the victory over England at „Wembley“. The starting 11 started with Marc Pubil, Pau Kubarsi, Dean Heusen, Martin Subimendi and Alex Baena. For Croatia, Luka Modric remained a substitute and appeared on the field at the end of the match.
Spain topped the group
The success left Spain alone in first place with six points after two matches. Croatia has three points, after defeating the Czech Republic 2-1 in the first round.
Before the match with Croatia, De la Fuente warned that there was a “new and difficult match“ ahead. However, Spain convincingly reached the three points and continued their series of strong results after winning 2-3 away against England.
The Spaniards' next match is against the Czech Republic on October 3 at the “Carlos Tartiere“ stadium in Oviedo. The starting time is 20:45 Bulgarian time.
Sources: El Pais, AS, Cadena SER