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Two-time Euro winners and defending champions Spain just about managed to get all three points in the Euro 2016 qualifier against Macedonia on Tuesday night at the Filip II Arena stadium in Skopje. The result sees Spain top of Group C with 21 points while Macedonia, already eliminated, languish at the bottom with just three points. Slovakia were held to a 0-0 draw by Ukraine and are now second in the group with 19 points while Ukraine are third with 16 points.
Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata scored the only goal of the game in the 8th minute to give La Furia Roja the win. After a free kick taken by the Spaniard was cleared, the ball came back to him out on the right side of the box.
While looking to cross the ball with his right foot, the midfielder ended up delivering the ball towards the far post. The ball came off the post and was deflected in off Macedonia goalkeeper Tome Pacovski as he fumbled with the ball while backing up into the post.
New-look Spain fail to capitalize on first-half lead
Spanish coach Vicente del Bosque had made a number of changes to the side that played Slovakia over the weekend. Spain had won that game 2-0 in Oviedo with Jordi Alba and Andres Iniesta scoring.
Although Diego Costa was still selected in the starting XI, other key players were rested with Juan Mata and Santi Cazorla getting a start. Meanwhile, Iker Casillas was benched with David De Gea starting this game. The game also saw Costa going into the referee’s book and he will now miss the next qualifier when Spain take on Luxembourg in October.
“It felt good [to play]. I wanted to play. Now it’s time to keep working and we’ll see if things go well in my club too.” – David De Gea, as reported by The Guardian
La Roja did not take advantage of the lead and missed a couple of chances to get more names on the scoresheet. Dani Carvajal came closest when his long-range shot from outside the box hit the post with Pacovski unable to move an inch.
The second half saw Macedonia try and get back into the game. With Spain unable to make their chances count, Macedonia’s defence became more confident of holding on. But at the same time, they were unable to score a goal themselves. Spain have now kept six consecutive clean sheets in official international matches.
