Spain B squad swiftly crushes Albania's aspirations
Skirmishing no goals surrendered, Spain wraps up group stage of the EM with an unblemished record. Spain B, favored contender, also wins 1:0 against tenacious Albanians, ousting them from the competition as a result.
Another potential quarterfinal foe, three-time European champions Spain, also nailed the flawless group stage of the EM with a B squad. On Monday, onlooking 40,586 spectators at Düsseldorf, Ferran Torres (FC Barcelona, 13th minute), aided by a splendid pass from Leipzig's Dani Olmo, pocketed a goal following a quarter of an hour. Placing second in the group, Albania, directed by national coach Sylvinho, was relegated from group B following a paltry single point tally.
Winning the group, Spain marches forward to a round of 16 showdown against a group third on Sunday in Cologne, while eliminating Albania.
Olmo's Stunning Longball
The Spanish team, encountering ten alterations, needed a spark to get things rolling against the resolute Albanians. In the initial minutes, a few hiccups arose, but gradually, the odds-on favorite asserted ownership over the game. Displaying a unique style, long passes instead of regular passes were favored.
Unleashing an outstanding longball, Olmo crafted a perfect through ball for Torres, who deftly pounced on the opportunity, scoring the Furia Roja's initial goal.
Albania Hangs Tough
Spain dominated the proceeding but struggled with efficiency and wasted several opportunities to double their lead quickly. Spain came close to closing the deal promptly when Kristjan Asllani of Inter Milan forced a formidable stop from Spain's substitute goalkeeper David Raya of Arsenal with a gutsy long-range strike (45th minute).
The yellow-card recipient, Rodri, and the later-substituted prodigy star Lamine Yamal, along with Nico Williams, nap-timed the Albanians' starting lineup. The underdog needed a win to move on. However, opportunities for Albania came late in the game but went to waste.
Despite dominating their foe tactically, yet being careless in the second half in both chance creation and execution, Iberia kept the outsider, egged on by thousands of tumultuous Albanian fans, neck-and-neck throughout the contest. Substitute Armando Broja squandered the best chance for an equalizer in the 65th minute. Raya saved strong once more in the last major chance from Broja in stoppage time.
