A deflected shot from Martin Zubimendi in the 79th minute proved to be the difference as Spain secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Denmark in their Nations League Group A4 clash on Saturday. The win extends Spain’s lead at the top of the group to seven points, with Denmark trailing in second with six points.
Spain, missing several key players due to injuries, dominated possession early on but found it difficult to break down a stubborn Danish defense. The first half saw several chances missed by both sides, with Spain’s Alvaro Morata and Denmark’s Kasper Dolberg both coming close to scoring.
The game remained tight until the 79th minute when Zubimendi’s first-time shot from the edge of the box deflected off a defender before sneaking past a bemused Kasper Schmeichel. The goal, Zubimendi’s first for his country, was enough to secure the win for Spain.
The victory was made even more impressive by the fact that Spain was without several key players, including Dani Carvajal, Rodri, Nico Williams, Dani Olmo, and Robin Le Normand.
“We are very happy, especially in such a tight game in which we had to dig deep to open the scoring,” said Zubimendi after the game. “In the first half, we didn’t play our best football, we left some spaces open in the back that they exploited and could have hurt us but we fixed it in the second half, locked them up and got the job done.”
Despite the defeat, Denmark will be encouraged by their performance, particularly the strong defensive display that kept Spain at bay for much of the game. They will look to bounce back in their next game, which is against Serbia on September 10th.
The win for Spain keeps them firmly on track for promotion to the top tier of the Nations League, where they will be aiming to compete with the likes of France, Italy, and Netherlands next season.
