Spain edges early lead in tense Euro 2024 final against England
Spain's national football team is battling England in the final of Euro 2024. After a relatively uneventful first half, the scoreboard showed a 0-0 draw. The highlight of the first half was Dani Carvajal's "clash" with Bukayo Saka, whom the Spaniard outplayed. He then cruelly mocked the youngster.
The national teams of Spain and England are playing in the 51st and final match of this year’s European Championship. Both teams approached the game with great respect for their opponent. As a result, the first half of the game lacked clear goal-scoring opportunities.
The statistics tell it all. The coefficient xG (expected goals) is 0.22 for Spain and 0.16 for England. It’s a draw-in shot. La Furia Roja made one off-target shot. The English responded with one shot on target by Phil Foden in the 45th minute of the match.
As such, the "event" of the first half was Bukayo Saka's clash with Dani Carvajal. The Spaniard reacted mockingly to the Englishman's tumble.
In the 23rd minute of the match, the Spanish defender brought down the English national team's winger. In doing so, he disrupted the Three Lions' dangerous counter-attack towards Unai Simon's goal. The French referee officiating the game, Francois Letexier, immediately whistled for a foul for the English.
This decision was met with strong disapproval by the Real Madrid player. However, the Spanish player had no complaints against the referee. Mocking Bukayo Saka, he performed a crying gesture towards his opponent. The Spanish player pretended to wipe his eyes and slowly backed away before resuming play.
Apart from this incident, the English had one chance to take the lead in the 45th minute of the match. Phil Foden reached the ball after a cross into the Spanish penalty area. However, with a sliding shot, he hit Unai Simon directly. But their opponents took the lead first, with Nico Williams scoring for Spain at 1-0 just after the break.
