Spain Beat Croatia as England Secure First Nations League Win
Sports Correspondent: Imran Sohail
MADRID: World champions Spain maintained their strong start to the UEFA Nations League with a 4-1 victory over Croatia, while England earned their first win of the competition by defeating the Czech Republic 2-0 on Tuesday.
Spain were playing at home for the first time since winning the 2026 World Cup in New York in July. Before kick-off, captain Rodri was presented with the World Cup trophy by former Spain international and Sevilla great Jesus Navas.
Lamine Yamal quickly gave the home side the perfect start, scoring within the opening two minutes.
Croatia responded through Dion Beljo, who headed in Ivan Perisic’s cross to make it 1-1. However, Spain regained the lead only three minutes later when Atletico Madrid defender Marc Pubill headed home a cross from Yamal.
Yamal added his second goal in the 63rd minute with a precise finish to put Spain 3-1 ahead. The 19-year-old winger has now scored three goals in the 2026/27 Nations League campaign.
Nico Williams completed Spain’s convincing victory with a late goal in the final minute.
Spain now have six points from two matches and sit at the top of Group A3. England are second on goal difference with three points, while Croatia are third with three.
England Defeat 10-Man Czech Republic
England recorded their first Nations League victory under manager Thomas Tuchel with a 2-0 win over the Czech Republic in Prague.
The hosts were reduced to 10 players in the 23rd minute when Pavel Sulc was sent off for a high challenge on Elliot Anderson.
Despite their numerical disadvantage, the Czech Republic kept England from scoring during the first half.
England finally broke the deadlock shortly after the interval when Anthony Gordon headed in a cross from Trent Alexander-Arnold, who made his first England start in nearly two years.
Harry Kane doubled England’s advantage in the 69th minute, firing home after the ball fell to him inside the penalty area.
The victory was Gordon’s third goal in three matches for England, while Kane also scored for the national team against Spain in their previous game.
England will next face Croatia in Rijeka on Saturday, while Spain will host the Czech Republic in Oviedo.
Switzerland Beat Scotland
Elsewhere, Scotland suffered a 3-0 defeat against Switzerland in Group B1 after an early red card left them with 10 players at Hampden Park.
Slovenia moved into second place in the group after defeating North Macedonia 2-0 in Ljubljana.
