Luis de la Fuente's Spain is a growing team, an improvement that has been demonstrated in every game since that painful defeat in Glasgow last March. He has added the red one victory after another since then - there are six including the two that gave him the Nations League - until the one he reaped this Sunday in Oslo, which made mathematical what was already virtual: qualification for the Euro Cup that Germany will host. next summer, a tournament that has not been lost since 1992. The victory, more than deserved and to which Gavi put his signature, had a triple effect. Not only did it qualify Spain and put it in first place in group A in the fight to be seeded, it also sealed Scotland's passport and left Norway in the gutter.
There are those who are capable of making necessity a virtue. This is not the case of the Norwegians, absent from the final phases of the major championships since 2000 and who received Spain with the obligation to win so as not to extend that drought. But even so, Solbakken's Vikings did not show the slightest ambition, giving the ball to the red without dissimulation and entrusting themselves to some specific error by the rival or to the magician Haaland completing one of his tricks.
Spain did not deceive either, from which it is also easy to know what to expect, and even more so in a scenario like the one expected at the Ullevaal. Amass possession and be very patient until you find a way to target Nyland. Work for which Rodri, the most reliable electrician in the world, always capable of finding the switch, was essential.
The Spanish monologue was one of those that makes time, although it did not quite convince. The pressure on the poor Norwegian ball release was intense but no danger arose from that. Every dangerous ball was thrown far away by the Nordics.
Spain allied itself with luck after twenty minutes but wasted it. How to know which number will be the winner in the Christmas Lottery and not buy it. In his attempt to clear Carvajal's cross, Strandberg misled his goalkeeper and hit the ball into his goal. It was a clear goal but Morata, who is in the midst of an escalation of Spanish scorers, was overcome by ambition and pushed it over the line, without thinking that he was offside. The VAR confirmed it and the referee annulled the goal.
The misfortune did not confuse Spain, which even from then on began to generate chances, although none of them were clear. Ferran Torres struggled on the right and Ansu Fati, the surprise in De la Fuente's lineup, couldn't find himself on the left, being substituted at half-time. But the mobility of Fabián and Gavi and the movement of the full-backs did not allow Norway to leave their field. Spain understood that in the face of such a crowded and closed defense, the best way to worry Nyland was with long-range shots. Carvajal tried with the outside and so did Rodri, in two good efforts that went astray.
Before the break came the only scare for Unai Simón, although the goalkeeper didn't even have to touch the ball. It was after a ride by Haaland almost from the center of the field that he ended up with his shot bouncing off an excellent Laporte, always well positioned. Little baggage for a team that boasts the best striker in the world and players like Odegaard or Sorloth.
The emergence of Oyarzábal after the break changed everything. In just one minute the man from Eibar had already given Nyland a good scare. And before five minutes into the restart, Spain opened the scoring with a goal also adorned with the uncertainty of the VAR. Ferran Torres' shot bounced off Morata and after a second attempt by Oyarzábal, the ball was caught by Gavi with his left foot and lodged in the goal. The doubtful position of several players delayed the awarding of the goal that certified Spain's presence in Germany for up to five minutes, which ended up going up the scoreboard and awakening euphoria on De la Fuente's bench.
Norway embraced Nusa to attempt the impossible. The skilled Bruges striker left his mark, putting his team's signature on his team's first shot between the sticks in the entire match, but it wasn't enough for much more. Haaland, almost at the end, also tested Simón with a timid shot. Spain didn't find the second either. I do not need it. The red one has already headed to Germany.
0 - Norway: Newland; Ryerson, Strandberg (Ajer, m.77), Østigård, Meling; Bobb (Sørloth, m.59), Ødegaard, Berg (Nusa, m.58), Berge, Aursnes (Thortsvedt, m.77); Haaland.
1 - Spain: Unai Simón; Carvajal, Laporte, Le Normand (David García, m.46), Fran García; Rodri, Gavi (Sancet, m.79), Fabián; Ferran Torres (Pedraza, m.71), Morata (Joselu, m.89), Ansu Fati (Oyarzábal, m.46).
Goal: 0-1, m.49: Gavi.
Referee: Tobias Stieler (Germany). He gave a yellow card, for Norway, to Bobb (m.31) and Ryerson (m.39); for Spain, to Le Normand (m.29), Laporte (m.56), Morata (m.61) and Rodri (m.86).
Incidents: Group A match of the qualifying phase for the Euro 2024 in Germany, played at the Ulevaal Stadium in Oslo, in front of 25,885 spectators (full), including about 700 Spanish fans. King Harald V of Norway attended the meeting.
