Spain vs Croatia 4-1: Lamine Yamal scores twice as world champions stay perfect

Spain beat Croatia 4-1 in the UEFA Nations League in Seville on Tuesday night, with Lamine Yamal scoring twice and setting up another. "Spain vs Croatia" was among the most searched phrases in Pakistan overnight, with Google Trends putting it above 20,000 searches.

The win was Spain's first home match since they won the World Cup in July, and it stretched their European-record unbeaten run to 40 matches. Rodri paraded the trophy on the pitch before kick-off.

Spain vs Croatia: the goals

• 2 min, Lamine Yamal (1-0): Alex Baena's ball was dummied by Fermin Lopez and Yamal curled a first-time low shot inside the far post.
• 28 min, Dion Drena Beljo (1-1): Ivan Perisic crossed from the left after a pass from Mateo Kovacic, and Beljo headed in his first goal for Croatia in his third international.
• 31 min, Marc Pubill (2-1): Yamal whipped the ball into the six-yard box from the right and Pubill powered a header past Dominik Livakovic, less than three minutes after the equaliser.
• 63 min, Lamine Yamal (3-1): Pedri found him in the box and he drilled a shot in from a tight angle.
• 89 min, Nico Williams (4-1): the substitute wrapped it up late.

Livakovic made several saves to keep the score down, and Spain also had a goal ruled out before half-time.

Spain and Croatia in Group A3 after two games

Spain had beaten England 3-2 at Wembley on Saturday. England then won 2-0 in Prague against a Czech side down to 10 men, moving above Croatia into second place. Croatia had beaten Czechia in the opening round.

Why it matters

This was a repeat of the 2023 Nations League final, which Spain won on penalties. On Tuesday there was no contest after the hour: Spain controlled possession and pressed high, and Croatia coach Slaven Bilic, back in charge since July, now has to regroup quickly.

What is next

Croatia host England in Rijeka on Saturday 3 October, with England now above them in second. Spain sit three points clear at the top.

For Pakistani fans, the next big match is closer to home: Pakistan play Bangladesh in the Asian Games cricket semi-final at 5am on Thursday 1 October (PKT). Timings for every match are on our Asian Games cricket schedule in Pakistan time, and our guide to the Tamasha app explains how to stream the Asian Games in Pakistan.