{"id":1518826,"date":"2026-11-15T22:35:17","date_gmt":"2026-11-15T22:35:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?post_type=features&p=1518826"},"modified":"2026-11-15T22:40:49","modified_gmt":"2026-11-15T22:40:49","slug":"spain-vs-england-stats-analysis","status":"publish","type":"features","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/features\/spain-vs-england-stats-analysis\/","title":{"rendered":"Spain vs England stats and analysis: Tuchel’s ‘Proof of Concept’ produces famous win"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

England<\/a> secured top spot in their Nations League group in dramatic fashion on Sunday night with a famous 3-2 win over world champions Spain<\/a> in Madrid.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Three Lions produced a magnificent performance over the first hour to race into a 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Harry Kane<\/a>, Ezri Konsa<\/a> and Ben White<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

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However, Elliot Anderson<\/a>‘s red card turned the game on its head. Goals from Mikel Oyarzabal<\/a> and Nico Williams<\/a> dragged Spain back into it, and La Roja came close to completing a terrific comeback, only for James Trafford<\/a> to deny them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

England’s flying start<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

England made a hugely impressive start. Spain wanted to dominate possession, and Thomas Tuchel<\/a>‘s side matched them by going man-to-man with a high press all over the pitch. It led to chances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jude Bellingham<\/a> and Anthony Gordon<\/a> forced mistakes and turned the ball over in dangerous areas, even winning set pieces from which England looked particularly threatening. Bellingham probably should have put them ahead early on from a Declan Rice<\/a> delivery, only to see his close-range volley brilliantly saved by Unai Simon. England’s second goal came via the same route, with Konsa finding space to head home Rice’s set piece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even when Spain managed to play through and push England back into a mid-block, Rice continued to lead the press superbly, triggering it against his Arsenal<\/a> team-mates Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

In the build-up, Tuchel described this trip as a ‘proof of concept’ game against the best team in the world, and after the start England enjoyed, there could hardly be more proof needed. Within the first 20 minutes, England had registered four shots, four chances created, five completed take-ons and 18 final-third passes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kane’s penalty on the stroke of half-time was more than deserved, as were the goals from Konsa and White early in the second half. Until Spain’s first goal, it was a genuinely near-perfect display from the Three Lions both in and out of possession, and it will give the squad plenty of confidence heading into next year’s quarter-finals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rotation options state their case<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

With more than 18 months to go until the next major tournament, there are still places in Tuchel’s best XI up for grabs, and a few players made a strong case for a starting spot here, not least Trafford.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Leeds goalkeeper has been rotated with Jordan Pickford<\/a> since the World Cup, and after an hour he had barely been tested. But concentration is key, and he came up clutch in the closing stages to take England over the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a handful of well-executed stops, his crowning moment came in the first minute of stoppage time, when he produced a stunning double save to deny Fermin Lopez and Aymeric Laporte<\/a>. He finished with six saves, all of them in the final 30 minutes, while Pickford, bizarrely, was booked for dissent on the bench.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are still questions for Tuchel to answer at full-back too, but Lewis Hall<\/a> and White may have supplied some answers. Hall was involved throughout, taking the second-most touches for the Three Lions after Rice, completing five take-ons, creating one big chance and doing his part defensively with seven clearances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

White, on the other hand, will make the headlines with what proved to be the winning goal, and a well-taken one at that. The Arsenal man also made a superb tackle late on to snuff out a developing Nico Williams chance. He was less involved than Hall overall, but produced two eye-catching moments that will live long in the memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Game management pays off<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Such was England’s dominance in the opening hour that Spain’s first shot on target was Oyarzabal’s 65th-minute penalty. But when Anderson brought down Lamine Yamal<\/a> and was sent off, the game turned completely on its head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main question mark hanging over Tuchel since the World Cup has been his game management. England lost control in their semi-final defeat to Argentina<\/a>. The German adopted a safety-first approach to protecting a lead, which had helped his side over the line against Mexico<\/a> and Norway<\/a>, but that game against La Albiceleste proved one step too far.<\/p>\n\n\n