Spain end England unbeaten run

AFP, ALICANTE (SPAIN): Spain struck twice in the final 20 minutes as goals from Mario Gaspar and Santi Cazorla ended England’s 15-match unbeaten run in Alicante on Friday. Villarreal right-back Gaspar scored a sensational volley to open the scoring when he swivelled in mid-air to turn home Cesc Fabregas’s pass. And Cazorla sealed the win for the European champions when he slotted home from the edge of the area six minutes from time.
“It is a prestigious result against a very strong team that threatened us the whole game,” said Spain coach Vicente del Bosque. England boss Roy Hodgson meanwhile lamented his side’s inability to take advantage of their few counter-attacking opportunities. “The assessment of the result is it is obviously disappointing to lose,” said Hodgson. Hodgson kept his pre-match promise to leave captain Wayne Rooney on the bench with Harry Kane and Ross Barkley given their chance to shine.
And it was the visitors who had the first two openings, but neither Raheem Sterling nor Barkley could find the target when well-placed on the edge of the box. Barcelona defender Gerard Pique was once again whistled by some of the home support for his disparaging comments towards Real Madrid in recent months. However, he nearly provided the perfect response as his deflected effort from 20 yards looped inches wide on 15 minutes. Sergio Busquets then volleyed just off target from a corner as Spain began to take control of the game.
However, Vicente del Bosque’s men suffered a blow when Thiago Alcantara hobbled off with a knee injury midway through the half to be replaced by Cazorla. Del Bosque had surprisingly chosen to play two strikers in the form of Paco Alcacer and Diego Costa and both came close to the opener before half-time.

Result
Spain  2-0 England

Spain end England unbeaten run

AFP, ALICANTE (SPAIN): Spain struck twice in the final 20 minutes as goals from Mario Gaspar and Santi Cazorla ended Englands 15-match unbeaten run in Alicante on Friday. Villarreal right-back Gaspar scored a sensational volley to open the scoring when he swivelled in mid-air to turn home Cesc Fabregass pass. And Cazorla sealed the win for the European champions when he slotted home from the edge of the area six minutes from time. It is a prestigious result against a very strong team that threatened us the whole game, said Spain coach Vicente del Bosque. England boss Roy Hodgson meanwhile lamented his sides inability to take advantage of their few counter-attacking opportunities. The assessment of the result is it is obviously disappointing to lose, said Hodgson. Hodgson kept his pre-match promise to leave captain Wayne Rooney on the bench with Harry Kane and Ross Barkley given their chance to shine. And it was the visitors who had the first two openings, but neither Raheem Sterling nor Barkley could find the target when well-placed on the edge of the box. Barcelona defender Gerard Pique was once again whistled by some of the home support for his disparaging comments towards Real Madrid in recent months. However, he nearly provided the perfect response as his deflected effort from 20 yards looped inches wide on 15 minutes. Sergio Busquets then volleyed just off target from a corner as Spain began to take control of the game. However, Vicente del Bosques men suffered a blow when Thiago Alcantara hobbled off with a knee injury midway through the half to be replaced by Cazorla. Del Bosque had surprisingly chosen to play two strikers in the form of Paco Alcacer and Diego Costa and both came close to the opener before half-time. Result Spain 2-0 England