England loses 3-2 to Spain despite taking an early lead

Of course it was the game of the year for World Cup third place England against world champions Spain. But England team boss Thomas Tuchel had to watch as his team got off to a very poor start to the game. Central defender Marc Guéhi lost the ball in the last line to Barcelona's Yamal, who pushed past keeper James Trafford to give Spain an early lead (2nd). The Three Lions' defense remained rather holey afterwards. Luckily for England, World Cup final hero Ferran Torres missed the chance to extend their lead twice.

England remained pale for much of the first half. The equalizer was all the more surprising: Nico Williams lost the ball in the opponent's box, and Spain legionnaire Anthony Gordon used the brilliantly clean counterattack to make it 1-1 (38th). Just two minutes later, it was Bayern striker Harry Kane who completely turned the game on its head with a header and the help of Marc Cucurella's thigh and gave England a 2-1 lead.

Shortly after the break, Tuchel's team even had the chance to follow up after a foul on Jude Bellingham. But Kane slipped away from the penalty and hit the crossbar. So it was the Spaniards who took advantage of another mistake in the English defense on the other side and made it 2-2 through substitute Alex Baena (60th). Less than fifteen minutes later: After a world-class combination, Mikel Oyarzabal lofted the ball over Trafford into the net to give Spain another lead (74'). This time the world champion left no stone unturned and brought victory over time.