England 2-3 Spain Oyarzabal Seals Comeback Win in Nations League Opener

Spain began their Nations League campaign with a dramatic 3-2 victory over England at Wembley, overturning a first-half deficit before Mikel Oyarzabal produced the decisive moment in the second half.

The result marked Spain’s first competitive match since their World Cup triumph and once again saw Oyarzabal make a decisive impact against England. The forward had also scored the winning goal against England in the Euro 2024 final.

Lamine Yamal put Spain ahead early, but England responded through Anthony Gordon and Harry Kane to take a 2-1 lead into halftime.

England then had an opportunity to extend their advantage after the break, but Kane struck the crossbar from the penalty spot. Spain capitalized on the missed chance, with Alex Baena equalizing before Oyarzabal completed the comeback.

Yamal Gives Spain an Early Lead

Spain needed just two minutes to break the deadlock.

England defender Marc Guehi lost possession while turning back toward his own goal, allowing Yamal to steal the ball. The young Spanish forward made no mistake, sending his shot against the inside of the far post and into the net.

Spain appeared to have doubled their advantage soon afterward when Ferran Torres headed home from a Fabian Ruiz delivery. However, the goal was ruled out for offside.

Torres then had two more promising opportunities.

James Trafford stood up well to deny him in a one-on-one situation, while the Spanish forward later fired wide from another good position.

Dani Olmo also came close after receiving a clever backheel from Yamal, but his effort from a difficult angle went wide.

England eventually began to threaten, with Harry Kane sending an effort narrowly off target.

England Turn the Match Around

England's response was swift.

In the 36th minute, Nico Williams slipped, allowing England to launch a dangerous counterattack. Anthony Gordon combined with Jude Bellingham before calmly finishing from the edge of the penalty area to bring England level.

The momentum quickly shifted toward the hosts.

Just four minutes later, England completed the turnaround.

Nico O'Reilly delivered a chipped ball into the penalty area, and Kane managed to get ahead of Aymeric Laporte to meet it. His effort took a deflection off Marc Cucurella before finding the net.

England went into halftime 2-1 ahead despite Spain having controlled significant portions of the opening period.

Kane Misses Chance to Extend England's Lead

England started the second half positively.

Bellingham won a penalty after going down following a challenge from Rodri, giving Kane the chance to put England two goals ahead.

However, the England captain's standing foot slipped as he took the penalty, sending the ball crashing against the crossbar.

It proved to be a pivotal moment.

Spain immediately began pushing for a response.

Baena Brings Spain Level

Spain found their equalizer around the hour mark, with England once again contributing to their own problems.

O'Reilly's loose pass fell directly to Dani Olmo, who quickly assessed the situation before finding Alex Baena.

Baena made no mistake, firing past Trafford to make it 2-2.

With the momentum shifting again, Spain began looking increasingly dangerous.

Oyarzabal Completes Spain's Comeback

The decisive goal arrived in the 74th minute.

Baena became the creator this time, splitting England's defensive line with a perfectly weighted through ball.

Oyarzabal raced onto it as Trafford came off his line.

The Spanish forward calmly lifted the ball over the advancing goalkeeper, sending it into the net and putting Spain 3-2 ahead.

The goal was reminiscent of his decisive strike against England in the Euro 2024 final and once again made Oyarzabal the difference-maker against the Three Lions.

England pushed for an equalizer during the closing stages, but Spain held on to secure all three points.

Spain Extend Remarkable Unbeaten Run

The victory extended Spain's extraordinary unbeaten run to 39 matches in all competitions, with the team recording 30 wins and nine draws within 90 minutes during that sequence.

It also extends the longest unbeaten run recorded by a European national team across all competitions.

However, the match contained an unusual statistic for Spain.

They conceded twice in the opening 45 minutes of a competitive match for the first time since October 2018, when England themselves scored three times against Spain at the Benito Villamarin in a Nations League fixture.

Spain also conceded more goals in the first half against England than they did throughout their entire World Cup-winning campaign, when they conceded only once.

Yamal Makes History at Wembley

Yamal's opening goal added another milestone to his rapidly developing international career.

His strike came just two minutes into the match, making it the third-fastest goal England have conceded at Wembley.

At 19 years and 75 days, Yamal also became the youngest player to score against England in a competitive match at Wembley during the past two decades.

England Show Fight Despite Defeat

Despite surrendering the lead, England produced enough attacking threat to make Spain work for the victory.

The hosts registered 12 shots, with four finding the target, and recorded an expected goals (xG) figure of 1.51.

Spain produced 15 attempts, five of which were on target, while their overall xG stood at 1.99.

However, England's mistakes ultimately proved costly.

The Three Lions committed two errors that directly led to goals, the first time they had made two such errors in a competitive international match since June 2019, when they faced the Netherlands in the Nations League.

Spain Show Their Resilience

Spain's comeback demonstrated their ability to recover even after losing control of the match.

England's two-goal first half represented a rare defensive setback for the world champions, but Spain responded after the break and took advantage of crucial mistakes from the hosts.

For England, the defeat will be particularly frustrating given that they led at halftime and had a penalty opportunity to extend their advantage.

For Spain, however, the comeback provides an immediate statement at the start of their Nations League campaign.

Match Summary

England 2-3 Spain

England scorers: Anthony Gordon, Harry Kane
Spain scorers: Lamine Yamal, Alex Baena, Mikel Oyarzabal

Venue: Wembley Stadium, London
Competition: UEFA Nations League