"It started in Scotland and it still hasn't finished yet. That night at Hampden was only Luis de le Fuente's second as Spain coach; it also felt like it might be his last. Two Scott McTominay goals defeated the seleccion but while just about everyone else thought his spell would be brief, he was talking about a pathway opening and here's the thing: the man accused of living in Disneyland back then was right."
"Three years and four days later, Spain moved to within touching distance the World Cup, and also racked up their 29th consecutive competitive game unbeaten*, equalling the record. On a night when Pedri played and Mikel Merino made the difference, Spain beat Bulgaria 4-0 to take them to 12 points from 12 in qualifying, close now."
"And so it was the Real Sociedad striker, scorer of the winner at the final of Euro 2024, who kept the sequence going, equalling what Vicente del Bosque's golden generation did between 2010 and 2013. Now, you may have noticed the asterisk there, and rightly. FIFA might not count it as a defeat, but in this run Spain did lose once 7-5 on penalties to Portugal in the final of the Nations League back in June."
Spain have matched Vicente del Bosque's team's 29-game competitive unbeaten run after a 4-0 qualifying win over Bulgaria. Pedri scored twice and was denied a second hat-trick when he was fouled in the final minute and gave the penalty to Mikel Oyarzabal, who scored. Mikel Merino made the difference in midfield. The run includes winning the 2023 Nations League, the Euro 2024 title, and a 2025 Nations League final appearance. FIFA does not record a penalty-shootout loss as a defeat, yet Spain lost on penalties to Portugal in the 2023 Nations League final. Four wins from four in qualifying give Spain a 15-0 aggregate.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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