England travel to Madrid to face Spain on Sunday night as Tuchel seeks evidence of post-World Cup progress
England will face holders Spain at the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid on Sunday night in a Nations League match that will test whether head coach Thomas Tuchel and his players have learned lessons from their World Cup semi-final defeat by Argentina.
Spain enter the fixture on a 43-game unbeaten run that included beating Argentina in New Jersey to win the World Cup, a sequence in which they have won 34 and drawn nine games since a 2-1 loss to Colombia in March 2024; they also became European champions by beating England in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin. Captain and Ballon d'Or winner Harry Kane described the trip to the Metropolitano as: "The perfect opportunity to try and prove ourselves."
Tuchel confirmed Leeds United's James Trafford will get another opportunity in goal as he continues to alternate with Jordan Pickford and framed the match as a decisive challenge, saying: "This will be proof of concept on the highest level. It's the biggest test in world football. Spain are unbelievable on an incredible run." He added: "Spain won the last big titles. We are trying to take it away from them. We are up for it. We are in a good moment to push our limits. We are up for something spectacular."
Spain are notably strong at home, unbeaten in 20 matches—winning 15 and drawing five—since a 2-1 defeat by Switzerland in September 2022. England's most recent victory on Spanish soil was a 3-2 win in Sevilla in October 2018, which the article notes was their first away win against Spain for 31 years; the teams last met in September at Wembley where England lost 3-2 and a missed penalty by Kane prevented a potential 3-1 lead.
England arrived in Madrid on Saturday evening after four successive wins since that Wembley loss, the latest a 2-1 victory against Croatia at Wembley on Thursday. The Spain match is being cast as a barometer of whether Tuchel has adjusted following criticism of a perceived negative approach in the World Cup semi-final defeat in Atlanta, and the Football Association's post-tournament process included canvassing the whole squad and a "full and frank" meeting with Tuchel at the start of the September international break where Kane and Jude Bellingham were understood to have given forthright views.
Former England defender Matthew Upson, speaking for BBC Radio 5 Live, argued the match will reveal whether England have progressed and highlighted key individuals, saying: "Harry Kane saying this is the perfect opportunity for England to prove themselves is a great way to build this challenge up." He named players he considers to be performing at the highest level — "Kane, Bellingham and, at times, Anthony Gordon" — and underlined the need to get the rest of the team into a position to support them.
Upson also commented on England's tactical and mental adjustments since the World Cup, saying: "England are adopting a more positive approach, but look a little vulnerable defensively, which is maybe the compromise." On restoration of belief and reaction he added: "The biggest thing to fix after the World Cup was player reaction and player belief when we're in certain situations, especially if we go ahead and all of a sudden the game is difficult, as it was against Argentina. What is our mindset going to be?" He pointed to moments from the Wembley meeting with Spain, observing: "Against Spain at Wembley, I saw a reaction at half-time from England, which was fantastic. We should have gone 3-1 up with Harry's penalty, and in that 15 minutes after half-time we were super positive, aggressive in our decision-making."
The match at the Metropolitano Stadium on Sunday night in the Nations League will provide the immediate measure of those changes; as Upson put it, "This is something which will test people. It's a really significant game for England on a lot of levels."
