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Do England have a problem against top-10 teams?
Confirmed
In Short: Former England coach Thomas Tuchel's first win over a top-10 opponent came in the third-place match against France in the inaugural 2019 edition of the Nations League.
England faced Spain in their UEFA Nations League Group A3 match at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, September 26, with Spain emerging victorious 3-2.
The match began with a second-minute goal by Lamine Yamal, who capitalized on an error by England's Marc Guéhi.
England responded in the 36th minute when Anthony Gordon equalized after a counterattack involving Jude Bellingham.
The result highlights England's ongoing struggles against top-tier teams, as they have now won only six of their last 15 matches against sides ranked in the top 10 by FIFA.
England's performance against Spain, who are the reigning world champions, underscores the team's need to improve their defensive shortcomings and ability to dominate elite opposition.
England's next match is against Czechia in Prague on Tuesday, while Spain will host Croatia.
The UEFA Nations League, founded in 2018, aims to provide competitive matches for nations against equally-ranked teams, reducing the number of meaningless friendlies.
What this adds
The match was seen as a rematch of the UEFA Euro 2024 final, which Spain won.
England's record against top-10 sides leaves much to be desired, with only six wins in their past 15 games against such teams.
What's confirmed
- England faced Spain in their UEFA Nations League Group A3 match at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, September 26, with Spain emerging victorious 3-2.
- The match began with a second-minute goal by Lamine Yamal, who capitalized on an error by England's Marc Guéhi.
- England responded in the 36th minute when Anthony Gordon equalized after a counterattack involving Jude Bellingham.
- The result highlights England's ongoing struggles against top-tier teams, as they have now won only six of their last 15 matches against sides ranked in the top 10 by FIFA.
- England's performance against Spain, who are the reigning world champions, underscores the team's need to improve their defensive shortcomings and ability to dominate elite opposition.
- England's next match is against Czechia in Prague on Tuesday, while Spain will host Croatia.
- The UEFA Nations League, founded in 2018, aims to provide competitive matches for nations against equally-ranked teams, reducing the number of meaningless friendlies.
What's still developing
- England, on the other hand, enjoyed their best result in the inaugural 2019 edition, finishing third.
- Opta’s supercomputer has handed Spain a 40.2 percent probability of victory, while England have a 33.6 percent chance of winning.
- England have been getting closer to major tournament glory over a number of years but the same question remains - can they dominate the ball and beat elite opposition?
- The last time England faced Spain was the Euro 2024 final, which Spain won When England take on Spain in their opening Nations League match on Saturday, it will be tinged with a feeling of 'what could have been' for Three Lions fans.
- The Wembley match comes three months after England agonisingly missed out on the chance to face La Roja in the World Cup final, having lost to Argentina in the last four.
- That would have been a repeat of the 2024 Euros final, which England also lost.
- In fact, their record against top-10 sides leaves much to be desired.
- The victory over Les Bleus to take third place was Thomas Tuchel's first win as England boss over a top-10 opponent.
- Six wins in their past 15 games against top-10 opponents are not the kind of numbers an England team with the ambition of winning major tournaments can be happy with.
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