Nations League: Confident England look to snap Spain’s unbeaten streak

Who: Spain vs England
What: UEFA Nations League, Group A۳
Where: Metropolitano Stadium, Madrid, Spain
When: Sunday, November ۱۵, at ۷:۴۵pm (۱۹:۴۵ GMT).
How to follow: Al Jazeera Sport will bring you all the build-up from ۱۶:۴۵ GMT before our live text commentary stream.

England have the chance to avenge their defeat and end Spain’s ۴۳-match unbeaten record when they face the reigning world champions in Sunday’s final Nations League group encounter.

Spain staged a ۳-۲ comeback victory at London’s Wembley Stadium in late September, as Lamine Yamal scored an early opener and Mikel Oyarzabal finished the job.

Spain and England have both sealed their berth in the competition’s quaterfinals, with La Roja assured of the top spot should they avoid defeat on Sunday. England, meanwhile, will finish second if they fail to beat the two-time World Cup winners.

Teenage sensation Yamal, with four goals, and Mikel Merino, with three, have headlined Spain’s attacking charge, while newly-crowned Ballon d’Or recipient Harry Kane leads England.

Before Spain vs England, here’s everything you need to know:

How have Spain played in the Nations League?

Spain have a perfect record and lead Group A۳ with ۱۵ points.

They beat England ۳-۲ in the first game, an away trip, and followed it with a ۴-۱ rout of Croatia at home.

Then, they beat Czechia ۳-۱ at home, followed by a ۲-۱ away win over Croatia and a ۲-۰ away win over Czechia.

How have England played in the Nations League?

England are second in Group A۳ with ۱۲ points from five games, having won four times and lost once.

Their Nations League campaign started with a ۳-۲ home defeat to Spain before Thomas Tuchel’s side beat Czechia ۲-۰ and thrashed Croatia ۷-۰ in back-to-back away fixtures.

Later, they beat Czechia ۳-۰ at home and Croatia ۲-۱.

Tuchel eager to end Spain’s unbeaten run

Tuchel believes England are ready to end Spain’s unbeaten record when they face the world and European champions in Madrid.

While victory offers little more than the prospect of a more favourable Nations League quarterfinal in March, it would be a landmark moment for England if they could end Spain’s run of ۴۳ matches without defeat.

“It (Spain) is a team that has forgotten how to lose, so of course it requires a top performance first of all, and if we can deliver this performance, it will give us a big boost,” said Tuchel.

“I think we’re there, and I think we’re ready to win on Sunday.

“I know what it takes, and no one can ever guarantee it, but I think it’s the moment to check how far we are and to push our limit and proof of concept,” the German added.

“It’s important that we play with the same mindset that we played at home, and attack them and try to make it a physical game, and try to impose our strength.”

‘We want to get to ۴۴’: De la Fuente

De la Fuente said their unbeaten record provided his players with extra motivation.

“We want to keep setting new milestones, and this is another one,” he explained.

“None of us would probably ever have thought we’d even reach ۳۵, because we already felt those were astronomical numbers, but having reached ۴۳, you think, my goodness, we want to get to ۴۴, of course we do.”

What happened the last time Spain and England met?

Spain came from behind to beat England ۳-۲ in an entertaining Nations League encounter on September ۲۶, denying the hosts a cathartic win after their painful World Cup exit.

Yamal put Spain ahead in the second minute, but Anthony Gordon equalised, and Kane added another as England ended the first half with a ۲-۱ lead.

The Three Lions captain missed a penalty in the second half, though, allowing Spain to bounce back, as Alex Baena found the equaliser before Oyarzabal sealed victory in the ۷۴th minute.

Spain vs England: Predictions

Opta’s supercomputer favours Spain for victory. They have a ۵۹.۶ percent probability of winning, while England’s odds of victory are ۱۹.۳ percent.

There is a ۲۱.۱ percent chance the game ends in a draw.

Form guide

(Last five matches; last game first)

Spain: W-W-W-W-W

England: W-W-W-W-L

Head-to-head

• Matches: ۲۹
• Spain wins: ۱۲
• England wins: ۱۳
• Draws: ۴

Team news and predicted lineups

Spain 

Yamal is expected to face England after missing the last game with a knee problem. Nico Williams and Aymeric Laporte are doubtful

Probable Spain XI: Unai Simon; Marc Pubill, Pau Cubarsi, Dean Huijsen, Marc Cucurella; Dani Olmo, Rodri, Pedri; Lamine Yamal, Mikel Oyarzabal, Alex Baena

England 

Myles Lewis-Skelly returns from his suspension, while Ezri Konsa is also expected to return after missing the last game due to a knee injury.

Djed Spence (muscle) is doubtful, and Marc Guehi (muscle) remains out with injury.

Probable England XI: Jordan Pickford; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn, Lewis Hall; Elliot Anderson, Declan Rice; Morgan Rogers, Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon; Harry Kane

Spain vs England: TV channel, livestreaming

• Spain: RTVE PLAY
• United Kingdom: ITV۱
• Middle East and North Africa: beIN SPORTS
• United States: FOX Sports, FuboTV, ViX
• India: Sony Sports Network
• South Africa: DStv Stream

You can find your regional broadcaster on UEFA’s official broadcaster listing.