Spain rallies past England 3-2 at Wembley in Nations League opener

World Cup champions Spain rallied from a halftime deficit to defeat England 3-2 in a thrilling UEFA Nations League opener at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, stretching their competitive unbeaten run to 39 matches.apnews+1

Substitute Mikel Oyarzabal scored the winner in the 74th minute, chipping goalkeeper James Trafford from close range after fellow substitute Álex Baena threaded a pass through England's defense. It was a familiar nightmare for England — Oyarzabal also netted the decisive goal in the Euro 2024 final against the same opponents.reuters+1

A Wild First Half

The match was Spain's first since lifting the World Cup trophy against Argentina last summer, and Lamine Yamal needed barely two minutes to remind Wembley of their quality. The teenager dispossessed Marc Guéhi deep inside England's half and fired low past Trafford into the far corner.espn+1

Spain could have extended their lead as Ferran Torres twice squandered clear chances, but England struck back with a counterattacking goal that embodied Thomas Tuchel's stated desire to "embrace the chaos." Anthony Gordon exchanged passes with Jude Bellingham before sliding a composed finish past Unai Simón in the 36th minute. Four minutes later, Harry Kane headed England in front from a Nico O'Reilly cross, the ball deflecting off Marc Cucurella.reuters+1

Kane's Slip Changes Everything

The pivotal moment came early in the second half. Rodri fouled Bellingham in the box, and after a VAR review, referee Davide Massa pointed to the spot. Kane stepped up but slipped during his run-up, crashing the ball off the crossbar.bozemandailychronicle+1

Spain seized on the reprieve. Baena, on the pitch for barely five minutes, curled a low shot into the corner on the hour after O'Reilly carelessly gave the ball away. Fourteen minutes later, Baena fed Oyarzabal, who deftly lifted the ball over Trafford to complete the comeback.reuters+1

"We couldn't unfortunately convert the penalty, that may have been the decisive moment because I think then Spain would have maybe for the first time believed that their long run of unbeaten games ends here," Tuchel told ITV Sport.click2houston

Questions Linger for England

Kane acknowledged the parallels with England's World Cup semifinal collapse against Argentina. "We played against the world champions and the European champions, and we put in a good performance. On another day, we would definitely have won," he said.goal

The defeat underlined a persistent problem for Tuchel's side. According to ESPN, England now have just six wins from their last 16 matches against top-10-ranked teams. Spain, meanwhile, head into Tuesday's home fixture against Croatia with their record-setting streak intact — the last team to beat them in a competitive match was, ironically, England, 3-2 in Seville during the 2018-19 Nations League.nytimes+1