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England beat Spain 3-2 in what turned out to be a dramatic game in Seville in their UEFA Nations League encounter on Monday night. It was a tense start to the game with Spain dominating the early stages but England soon wrested control to score three first-half goals.
Raheem Sterling scored twice on either side of a Marcus Rashford strike to shock the crowd at the Estadio Benito Villamarín as England took a 3-0 lead into the half. Luis Enrique then waited 12 minutes in the second half before making substitutions.
Paco Alcacer scored within a minute of coming on from a corner kick to make it 1-3 while Sergio Ramos made it 2-3 in the 97th minute. By then it was too late for La Furia Roja to mount a comeback but a debatable penalty decision may have also changed the game.
This was Spain's first loss in a competitive game at home in 15 years. Here are the major talking points from the game.
#1 High defensive lines exposed early
With both teams employing a 4-3-3 formation, there was quite a bit of traffic in midfield. Off the ball, England organised themselves in a 4-5-1 formation with Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford dropping into the midfield line and playing wide.
This saw Spain initially resort to long balls to test the English centre-backs, particularly Joe Gomez. The 21-year-old was targeted by Spain's midfielders and their forwards looked to pounce on the second ball which was working as a useful tactic to create chances and take shots on goal.
Marco Asensio himself had three shots on target in the first 20 minutes and it was only by pure luck that Jordan Pickford managed to get in the way of Marcos Alonso's attempted shot.
However, it was England that drew first blood with their very first shot on goal. A move that started all the way back from Pickford saw him pick out Harry Kane in a deep position, who then spotted Rashford out on the flank.
Spain's back-line was slow to react and Rashford released Sterling with an incisive pass in behind with no chance for David De who could only look away in disgust as Sterling's piledriver of a shot screamed into the top corner.
To make matters worse for Spain, England made it 2-0 with another diagonal pass, this time from Harry Kane who spotted Rashford's run in behind. De Gea's lack of ability to come off his line and sweep up behind his defenders was clearly exploited by England manager Gareth Southgate.
The Three Lions ended the half with a 3-0 lead as Kane set up Sterling yet again with Spain's defence failing to pick his run.
#2 New-look Spain squad has much to learn about each other
Individually, the Spanish players Luis Enrique picked to start the game were fine players with many new faces eager to seal a permanent spot. Collectively, they were hardly ever on the same page, especially in the first half.
With Gerard Pique no longer in the international setup, Spain's defensive woes were compounded when Sergio Ramos and Nacho failed to communicate with each other.
Moreover, both Sterling and Rashford used the space left behind by Spain's attacking full-backs (Alonso and Jonny Otto) to get in behind their defence. With their raw pace, the back-tracking defenders were no match for the two youngsters.
Even in attack, Enrique had to make do without regulars such as Isco. Sadly, Iago Aspas and Rodrigo Moreno were unable to test Pickford after the initial nervousness at the back for the Three Lions.
Only Spain's midfield of Sergio Busquets, Thiago Alcantara, and Saul Niguez looked settled but they too were prone to a couple of errors that did eventually lead to goals.
#3 Jordan Pickford's distribution and England's midfield runs key to all goals
There were two aspects that made England's attack so much superior to Spain's. One of them was Jordan Pickford's distribution and long balls forward.
The first goal had seen the Everton goalkeeper find Harry Kane who had dropped to midfield - almost like a false nine. This resulted in Spain's defenders stepping up, allowing Rashford and Sterling to use their pace to get in behind.
Even the second goal had seen Pickford pick out Kane who managed to not only keep the ball but also run a full circle to keep defenders distracted that allowed Rashford to steal in behind and score.
This was a problem with Spain's defence. They were never alert to the danger of England's runs from deep until the final pass was made. Even for the third goal, nobody followed Kane's run as he latched on to Ross Barkley's lob over the defence to lay it on a plate for Sterling.
#4 Spain denied a penalty as Pickford error nearly costs England
After Luis Enrique had made a double substitution that had seen Paco Alcacer come on and score with a header from a corner to make it 1-3, the game could have gone down a different route had the referee awarded Spain a penalty.
Trying to be a little cute after receiving the ball in his box, Pickford attempted to dribble his way out of trouble when Rodrigo tried to press him. The goalkeeper left the ball behind him and that was when the Valencia forward pounced and almost got a shot off on an open goal.
However, Pickford used his arm to pull him back not once but twice. Rodrigo managed to keep his balance and that may have actually cost him. By the time he took a decision to shoot, Pickford stuck a leg out and tackled him as Enrique and his staff protested furiously on the bench.
Had Rodrigo gone down from Pickford's first pullback, Spain would have received a penalty and possibly a sending off as well for Pickford as he was nowhere close to legitimately challenging for the ball.
#5 Paco Alcacer should have started for Spain, Southgate shuts shop
Paco Alcacer has earned a reputation of sorts as a super-sub this season in the Bundesliga. On loan at Borussia Dortmund, the Spaniard has six goals in three substitute appearances.
It was the same case against England when he scored within a minute of coming on with a sublime header across goal after a corner was whipped in by Asensio.
That isn't the only reason why, though. Alcacer was quite busy in the final third, testing Pickford with a superb curling effort that also doubled as a cross for anyone willing to attack his delivery.
His efforts saw Spain begin to dominate the game again. His movements constantly troubled England's defence as he didn't simply stick to his position on the left of Rodrigo (and later Alvaro Morata).
It was enough for Southgate to bring on Kyle Walker and Ben Chilwell to help the Three Lions shut shop and take all three points with a two-goal cushion.
Ultimately, it was the right decision by the English manager as the visitors saw out the game even though Sergio Ramos scored with a diving header in the 97th minute with literally the last touch of the game.
England have now reeled in Spain in Group 4 of League A. They are now on 4 points - two points behind Spain.
