Spain lose nothing in Prague, again
Five games. Five wins. Spain left Prague tonight with a 2-0 win over the Czech Republic and their Nations League record in Group A3 still spotless. The hosts? Five games, five defeats.
The first half was one-way traffic. Matej Kovar had to deal with a Dean Huijsen header from a corner early on, then watched Pau Cubarsi nod another set piece against his crossbar. Something had to give, and it did when Lukas Ambros handled inside his own area. Alex Baena took the penalty and buried it. That was his fifth goal for his country.
Fabian Ruiz then curled one off the woodwork before the break. Three times Spain hit the frame in one night. Kovar was lucky to go in only one down.
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A Czech revival that died with Krejci’s red card
Spain thought they had doubled the lead three minutes after the restart. Unai Simon went long, of all things, and Yeremy Pino ran through to finish. The flag went up for offside. Strange how one disallowed goal can change a mood. The Czechs suddenly believed. David Zima scuffed a close-range chance over after a long throw, Lukas Provod saw a deflected shot roll just wide, and Adam Hlozek flicked a free kick onto the top of the bar.
Idris Hopi came off the bench for his senior debut as the hosts pushed. Then their captain undid them. Ladislav Krejci pulled back an opponent as the last man and was sent off. He had also been dismissed in the reverse fixture. Twice in one campaign against the same team.
Marc Pubill finished it late, stepping out of defence to slot past Kovar for 2-0.
England next, with top spot on the line
The numbers say plenty. The Czech Republic have gone eight games without a win in all competitions, with one draw and seven defeats. Spain are now unbeaten in 43 matches inside 90 minutes, 34 wins and nine draws.
Luis de la Fuente’s side host England on Sunday. A draw is enough for Spain to finish first in the group. England arrive on a high after beating Croatia on Harry Kane’s record-breaking night at Wembley, so nobody in the Spain camp is treating it as a formality.
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