United Kingdom

Lamine Yamal goal opens the scoring, but Spain made to comeback in Nations League win as Harry Kane misses penalty.

World champions Spain came from behind to beat England 3-2 in an entertaining Nations League encounter at Wembley on Saturday, denying the hosts a cathartic win after their painful World Cup exit.

Victory for Luis de la Fuente’s men extends Spain’s astonishing unbeaten run to 39 matches – a record for a European team.

Thomas Tuchel’s men got off to a nightmare start when Lamine Yamal pounced on a gaffe by defender Marc Guehi, and they could easily have been three goals down as silky Spain created multiple chances.

But England, criticised for their ultra-defensive tactics in their World Cup semifinal defeat to Argentina, showed adventure of their own and got their reward in the 36th minute when Barcelona winger Anthony Gordon finished a fine team move.

Four minutes later, the home side were ahead after Kane headed home Nico O’Reilly’s cross via a Marc Cucurella deflection.

Kane had a golden chance to give England a two-goal cushion from the penalty spot 10 minutes into the second half but slipped slightly, crashing his shot against the bar.

Spain, who beat England in the Euro 2024 final, took full advantage, with substitutes Alex Baena and Mikel Oyarzabal putting their side ahead, taking advantage of more sloppy defensive play from the home side.

England boss Thomas Tuchel was adamant ahead of the match that it did not signal a new start, but he will have been dismayed by his team’s nervy start.

Manchester City’s Guehi, with a chance to clear in the second minute, inexplicably turned back towards goalkeeper James Trafford, apparently unaware that Yamal was just behind him.

The teenager collected the ball and curled a left-footed effort off the inside of the post.

Ferran Torres was in the thick of the action, with an effort ruled out for offside and another shot saved by Trafford, in for longtime number one Jordan Pickford.

He also squandered a golden opportunity with just the goalkeeper to beat.

Yamal then set up Dani Olmo, who flashed wide as Spain rued yet another miss.

England, who had shown plenty of promise down the wings, made the visitors pay with an incisive counter-attacking goal after winning the ball back deep in their own half.

Gordon was involved early in the move and surged forward, collecting Jude Bellingham’s pass to steer the ball decisively past goalkeeper Unai Simon.

And, with the atmosphere now totally changed, England were in front when Kane rose to head home.

Tuchel’s men started the second half brightly and had a chance to extend their lead from the spot when they were awarded a penalty for a Rodri foul on Bellingham following a VAR check.

But Kane crashed his shot against the bar, and England paid the price when Baena steered home on the hour mark after O’Reilly had given the ball away to Olmo.

Worse was to come for the home side when Baena turned provider for Oyarzabal, who dinked the ball over Trafford.

Manchester City are understood to be ready to appeal any guilty verdict, but could face ‘severe penalty’ says ex-chair.

Former Manchester City chairman David Bernstein said the club could face potentially “drastic” sanctions after reportedly being found guilty on all but one of 115 charges for breaching Premier League financial rules.

The Premier League has not made an official announcement over the case and there is no indication of any possible punishment.

Abu Dhabi-backed City have always strenuously denied the charges and a club spokesperson said the position had not changed.

It is understood City will appeal should the charges be upheld.

“The club has diligently respected due process for eight years on the basis that the Premier League board and executive would behave as an independent, impartial and fair-minded regulator, free from partisan influence,” the spokesperson said.

City were charged by the Premier League in 2023 following an investigation into alleged breaches of rules between 2009 and 2018.

The club were accused of failing to provide accurate financial information and details of payments to players and coaches, as well as breaches of financial sustainability rules.

They were also charged with failing to cooperate with an investigation.

A hearing by an independent commission started in September 2024.

Man City face ‘severe penalty’

Bernstein, who was City chairman between 1998 and 2003, told Times Radio that “money is not sufficient” in terms of a potential punishment, urging a swift appeal process.

“The appeal process cannot go on for year after year, I think that would be a disaster,” he said, “not just for this particular case but for English football generally. The timing is crucial.

“I can’t give a view on the punishment. If they are found, after the appeal, guilty of [the] charges, my beloved club is going to face a very severe penalty.

“All I would say is that money is not sufficient, it would have to be something, unfortunately, more drastic than that.”

Oasis star and City fan Noel Gallagher described his “shock” at the developments.

Speaking on the Let Me Talk podcast, he said: “Surprised because only that the club have assured us all along that they vehemently denied any of these charges.

“So it was a bit of a shock to find out that we’ve been found guilty of all but one. But really overall just quite sad really. Sad for the fans and for the players.”

UK culture secretary Lisa Nandy described the case as “unsettling” for football fans and called for a swift resolution.

In 2020, UEFA imposed a two-year European ban on City as well as a fine for breaking financial fair-play rules, though that ban was later overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

If the reported guilty verdicts are confirmed, sanctions could include a severe points deduction and possibly even expulsion from the Premier League.

Everton and Nottingham Forest were both hit by points deductions in the 2023/24 season for single breaches of profit and sustainability rules.

Other Premier League clubs are understood to be taking legal advice about compensation relating to the charges.

Under the ownership of Sheikh Mansour, whose Abu Dhabi United Group acquired the club in 2008, City have become the dominant force in English football.

They have won eight Premier League titles, a Champions League crown and multiple other trophies over the past 15 years.

The latest developments in the case come just months after former City manager Pep Guardiola left the club following a golden decade in charge at the Etihad.

Guardiola always backed the club’s stance on the charges but threatened to walk away if he felt he had been lied to and they were proven to be true.

Ireland are due to play Israel in the Nations League in Hungary on Sunday, but boycott pressure mounts on and off-field.

The Ireland team’s news conference and training session the day before its first Nations League game against Israel have been delayed as pressure to boycott the matches grows.

Journalists in Debrecen, Hungary – where Israel’s “home” game is to be played Sunday – were left waiting Saturday after being told the news conference was being pushed back until after training. That was 15 minutes before it was supposed to begin.

Training was also significantly delayed, however, with Irish broadcaster RTE reporting the players were still in their hotel more than two hours after the training session was supposed to begin.

RTE reported that some players had decided they did not want to play the games.

“And if they stay to their stated ambition that they have to be all in it together, if one or more want to be out, maybe they will all be out,” reporter Tony O’Donoghue told RTE Radio 1.

The team has been coming under increasing pressure in Ireland, where affinity with Palestinians is strong, to boycott the two games – the first on Sunday and the second, Ireland’s “home” game, in Backa Topola, Serbia, on October 4.

Ireland midfielder Jason Knight said after Thursday’s 1-0 loss in Kosovo that the players were in a difficult situation and that he didn’t think the matches should be going ahead.

Ireland coach Heimir Hallgrimsson previously said “we’re not playing with genocide, we’re playing against genocide. We’re playing against Israel, we’re not playing with Israel” – drawing a furious reaction from the Israeli football federation, which accused the Icelandic coach of “stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy”.

The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) had resisted calls to boycott the matches, arguing the team could be hit by punishing sanctions by UEFA. Ireland is cohosting the 2028 European Championship with England, Wales and Scotland.

More than 160 Irish sportspeople signed an open letter urging the FAI to reconsider its decision to go ahead with the fixtures.

There were protesters outside the team hotel in Dublin last week calling on the players to boycott the games. The SIPTU trade union displayed a huge poster in central Dublin beside the River Liffey asking the players to “Go with your conscience!” and “Don’t play with genocide” beside an image of a blood-splattered ball.

Former Ireland coach Brian Kerr said the FAI had “lost the respect of the Irish people” for going ahead with the games.

“The Irish people and the soccer-going public don’t want the games to be played,” Kerr said. “I think they’ve made their opinions clear over the last year. The FAI back in November actually went to UEFA and requested that Israel be put out of the tournament on principle. And yet they went against that principle.”

Who: England vs Spain
What: UEFA Nations League 2026-27, Group A3 match
Where: Wembley Stadium, London, United Kingdom
When: Saturday, September 26, at 7:45pm (18:45 GMT)
How to follow: Al Jazeera Sport will bring you all the build-up and live updates from 15:45 GMT.

England begin their new Nations League campaign with a heavyweight home fixture against the reigning world champions, Spain.

Saturday’s clash at Wembley will be a rematch of the UEFA Euro 2024 final, which Spain won 2-1 in Berlin, Germany.

La Roja, the 2023 Nations League winners, are looking to add a second title to their collection, having also finished runners-up to Portugal in the last edition in 2025.

England, on the other hand, enjoyed their best result in the inaugural 2019 edition, finishing third. They return to League A this time after winning Group B2 in their previous appearance.

Competing in the top division of the structured competition, Croatia and Czechia are the other teams in Group A3 with England and Spain.

What is the UEFA Nations League?

The UEFA Nations League was founded in 2018 to reduce the number of meaningless friendlies and give nations competitive matches against equally-ranked teams.

In this competition, countries from across Europe participate in a league structure, which features promotion and relegation.

England vs Spain: Predictions

Opta’s supercomputer has handed Spain a 40.2 percent probability of victory, while England have a 33.6 percent chance of winning. The odds of a draw stand at 26.2 percent.

When did England and Spain last meet?

Spain have won six of their last nine meetings with England.

England and Spain last met at the UEFA Euro 2024 final, in which goals from Nico Williams and Mikel Oyarzabal handed La Roja a 2-1 championship victory. That result marked a record-breaking fourth European crown for Spain.

England vs Spain: Head-to-head

• Matches: 28
• England wins: 13
• Spain wins: 11
• Draws: 4

England vs Spain: Form guide

(Last five games, latest results first)

England: W-L-W-W-W

Spain: W-W-W-W-W

Which are the top players to watch?

Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham (England): All English hopes will once again rest on captain and Ballon d’Or frontrunner Harry Kane of Bayern Munich, who recently became the fastest player to 100 German Bundesliga goals. Elsewhere, attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham has made an impressive start under new Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho, producing three goals and three assists in seven La Liga appearances.

Ferran Torres and Lamine Yamal (Spain): La Roja fans will be excited to see Ferran Torres in the national team colours this weekend after he scored a hat-trick in his first Champions League appearance for new club Paris Saint-Germain. His former Barcelona teammate Lamine Yamal, too, is enjoying a strong start this season, with his seven goals rated joint-second-highest in La Liga.

What have the coaches said?

Thomas Tuchel, England coach: “I think the more you analyse Spain and their last matches they played in, you have to admire the way in which they defend. They added this to their game. It’s difficult for every single team in the world to create chances against Spain. But we have a plan, we have ambition, and we want to be the exception to the rule. At the moment, though, they are a very complete team.”

Luis de la Fuente, Spain coach: “I know what these players are made of. We are not satisfied with what we have done so far, I guarantee it. One story is over; now another begins. Another one in which we are very excited. We want to continue doing important things, to continue making records as historic as those that are being achieved.”

England vs Spain: TV channel, livestreaming

• United Kingdom: ITV1
• Spain: RTVE PLAY
• Middle East and North Africa: beIN SPORTS
• India: Sony Sports Network
• South Africa: DStv Stream
• United States: FOX Sports, FuboTV, ViX

England’s team news and predicted lineup

England are without winger Marcus Rashford, who picked up a knock, and attacking midfielder Cole Palmer, who has a muscle injury.

Probable England XI: Jordan Pickford; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ezri Konsa, Marc Guehi, Nico O’Reilly; Elliot Anderson, Miles Lewis-Skelly; Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon; Harry Kane

Spain’s team news and predicted lineup

Centre-back Marc Pubill is sidelined with physical discomfort, and goalkeeper Joan Garcia is out with a knee injury.

Probable Spain XI: Unai Simon; Eric Garcia, Pau Cubarsi, Dean Huijsen, Marc Cucurella; Fermin Lopez, Rodri, Fabian Ruiz; Lamine Yamal, Mikel Oyarzabal, Nico Williams