Spain beats Czechia 3-1 in Nations League as Lamine Yamal scores early

Yamal strikes early in Oviedo

Spain established control at the Estadio Carlos Tartiere in Oviedo after six minutes of play. Lamine Yamal cut inside from the right wing and directed a curling left-footed strike into the top corner past goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky. The 19-year-old forward had previously scored in the second minute against England on 26 September and in the second minute against Croatia on Tuesday. He nearly added a second in the 12th minute when his 20-meter lob drifted narrowly wide. Spain manager Luis de la Fuente expressed admiration from the technical area as his team took the early lead.

He never ceases to surprise all of us. He has so much talent, so much quality, that the best of Lamine is yet to be seen.

Match flow and second-half response

Spain increased their advantage in the 35th minute when captain Rodri scored to make it 2-0. De la Fuente substituted Yamal at halftime to manage player workloads across a sequence of four matches in ten days. Czechia mounted a response in the second half as Jiri Slama pulled a goal back in the 69th minute. The visitors had their momentum halted in the 85th minute when captain Ladislav Krejci received a second yellow card and was sent off. Mikel Merino came off the bench to score Spain's third goal in the 89th minute, sealing the 3-1 victory and extending their unbeaten run to at least 40 matches in regulation and extra time.

Squad rotation and international debuts

De la Fuente made nine changes to his starting lineup compared to the previous match, including David Raya stepping in for Unai Simon in goal. Sporting right-back Ivan Fresneda played the full match in his senior international debut after joining the squad on 20 September to replace the injured Pedro Porro. The appearance triggered a 500,000 euro contractual payment from Sporting to Fresneda's former club Real Valladolid. Forward Roberto Fernandez, currently playing for Espanyol, also made his senior debut as a substitute. Fresneda noted his shared career path with Porro, whom he followed from Valladolid to Sporting before replacing him in the national team.

Everything happened very fast. I was supposed to be with the under-21s the next day and they called me. I have had great weeks with this group and I am learning and enjoying it.

Group A3 standings and upcoming fixtures

The result leaves Spain in first place in UEFA Nations League Group A3 with nine points from their opening three matches. England occupy second place with six points after defeating Croatia 7-0 away, a match where Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka each scored twice. That fixture in Croatia was attended by more than 6,000 invited children and 100 away fans under UEFA regulations. Croatia remain third in the table with three points, while Czechia sit in fourth place without a point. Spain travels to face Croatia on Tuesday for their fourth group fixture.