Defeat Serbia, Spain Qualify For Quarter-finals Nations League

Spain qualified for the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations League after beating Serbia 3-0. (X/@SEFutbol)

JAKARTA - Spain made sure to qualify for the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations after defeating Serbia. In the Group 4 League A duel at Nuevo Arcangel Stadium, Kordoba, Spain, Wednesday, October 16, 2024 in the morning WIB, Spain won 3-0.

Spain completed the mission in the Nations League group stage impressively after losing without losing in the fourth match. As a result, Spain stepped into the quarter-finals before the initial round was over.

The victory over Serbia made the defending champion stronger in ranking first in the group. Now, La Roja is pocketing point 10. A three-point lead with Denmark who drew 2-2 against Switzerland.

Although the Nations League preliminary round still has two more matches left, Spain can no longer be chased by Serbia who are in third place with four points. The reason is that in the last match, Serbia is still struggling to compete for three points with Denmark.

In that duel, Spain did not field the best team. Lamine Yamal's forward is absent. Likewise, goalkeeper Unai Simon was not played by coach Luis de la Fuente.

Without the best squad, Spain, who acted as the host, was still too strong for Serbia. Even the game has only been running for five minutes, Spain has already already won.

Defender Aymeric Laporte put Spain 1-0 up after breaking into Serbia's goal when the game had only been running for five minutes. Starting from a Spanish attack through Alejandro Baena who provided feedback to Pedro Porro. After bringing the Porro ball then released a cross which was met with Laporte's header.

After winning through a quick goal, Spain actually controlled the game. They put pressure on the Serbian defense several times. However, the host's attack never came to fruition.

Entering the 16th minute, the forward Mikel Oyarzabal had a chance to increase his advantage. However, Oyarzabal's shot was thwarted by goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic.

However, the Euro 2024 champion still put pressure on him. It was a long time later that Mikel Merino's header almost added to the goal. Unfortunately, his efforts still hit the post.

No additional goals were created because Spain failed to convert every chance created. The 1-0 score lasted until the first half was over.

In the second half, Spain did not lower the tempo of the game. But they often failed to penetrate the Spanish defense. In the 54th minute, Spain was awarded a penalty that opened the hope of increasing the advantage.

The penalty was given after midfielder Veljko Birmancevic was declared to have touched the ball while blocking the opponent's kick in the box. Despite receiving protests from Birmancevic, referee Daniel Stefanski remained in his decision.

Striker Alvaro Morata who carried out the execution. Unfortunately, Morata's shot went wide so Spain failed to add goals.

However, Morata did not repeat the mistake when she received an assist from Fabian Ruiz in the 65th minute. The opportunity was used well to break into the Serbian goal. The score finally turned 2-0 for Spain.

In a position behind, Serbia actually lost a player. The violation of the Strahinja Pavlovic defender who brought down Oyarzabal led to a red card. Initially, the referee gave Pavlovic a yellow card. However, after reviewing the incident via VAR, Stefanski changed his decision

He immediately gave Pavlovic a red card. Not only that, Stefanski also gave a free kick outside the penalty box. Alejandro Baena finished the execution of the dead ball in the 77th minute. A free kick straight into the net from Baena slid beautifully into the Serbian goal.

The score changed to 3-0 for Spain. A three-goal advantage made De la Fuente's team no longer play at a high tempo.

Spain did not maximize the opportunity despite facing opponents who played with 10 people. They also ended the match with the advantage.