Spain overcomes losses with a win and goes to the quarterfinals

This champion Spain is much more than a great starting team. Luis de la Fuente remembered it in the preview of the match against Serbia and the facts demonstrate it. “If we don’t have the usual players, other players will give us more records,” the coach warned upon his arrival in Córdoba. Reality proved him right once again, as his team, with only four survivors compared to the starting eleven in the Euro Cup final, beat the Balkan team from start to finish, won with solvency and only a certain lack of aim in the first part separated him from a rout of scandal.

Serbia was no match. This was corroborated by Laporte’s early goal, a desired goal from Morata, who until then had been blocked by the rival goal and who even missed a penalty, and Baena’s icing on the cake, from a direct free kick. And Spain had only beaten this rival in one of their four meetings since the end of their union with Montenegro. In fact, in September, in Belgrade, the queen of Europe encountered a rocky rival, capable of drying up her offensive production during the 90 minutes.

The New Archangel thing was very different. La Roja surrounded the Serbian door from the first minute. The Balkan resistance lasted a sigh. It was brought down by an imposing header from Laporte at the far post, after a free kick by Pedro Porro, once again meritorious in attack. In this selection of circumstances due to injuries to the Al-Nassr centre-back, he has a role in the highest hierarchy, which he accepts with good taste, imposing his dominance of the aerial game.

The blow at the first change seemed to wake up Dragan Stojkovic’s team, Spain’s executioner in the 1990 World Cup in Italy, when socialist Yugoslavia still existed. The ‘plavi’ team at least left their domain to try to steal meters from La Roja, but it had little result. Oyarzabal ran into the former Mallorca player Rajkovic after advancing and advancing with the permission of the Balkan defense and Merino, a sure thing when the ball passes through the heights, finished with his head against the post.

Serbia was absolutely overwhelmed, trying to drain as much water as the sky of Córdoba poured over the Archangel. The truth is that the best news for the visiting team lay in the result and only 25 minutes had passed in the game. Vivian, incorporated into the shot, did not hole out with his right foot with everything in his favor, and Zubimendi finished up with his left after a long run with the ball attached to his good leg.

Spain only needed a greater dose of aim to get the match back on track against a rival that only appeared in Raya’s domain through Pavlovic’s soft shot. Oyarzabal responded, much more active than against Denmark. The Txuri Urdin attacker’s left foot shot was thwarted by Rajkovic’s outstretched effort, keeping his team on that tightrope in which they survived in a risky tightrope walk exercise.

Serbia reached the break alive, with only one goal behind. Almost a miracle, endorsed by another providential handball from Rajkovic on Morata’s header, after the Balkan goalkeeper himself had gotten into a mess of important proportions in an exit that ended with the ball in Cucurella’s boots. The Archangel applauded the Madrid forward, as always generous in his effort. Many things have changed in the Spanish fans since the victory in the Euro Cup.

Morata, failure and release

The task needed to be finished and Spain, getting to work to avoid any unforeseen event that would ruin a great match, warned soon, with Morata’s attempt on the half turn, after a great maneuver, which however was lost above the crossbar. Minutes later, La Roja’s starting striker had a perfect opportunity to redeem himself from eleven meters, but he missed the shot caused by Milenkovic’s hand.

The thing about the Milan striker took on the appearance of a curse on another double occasion, in which he first ran into Rajkovic and then the rival defense. The Córdoba public insisted with their affection for the player, the one that De la Fuente demands, and the close support bore fruit, as Morata got rid of his demons and, assisted by Fabián, finally found the path to the desired goal.

It was a liberation for the ‘7’ and also for the rest of the Spanish team, unleashed in a placid final stretch of the match by the expulsion of Pavlovic and chanted by the olés of the Córdoba parish. Álex Baena’s free-kick goal was the icing on the cake for a victory that was as clear as it was valuable, as it gave the European champion a pass to the quarterfinals of the Nations League.