Spain were crowned Nations League champions after they beat Croatia 5-4 on penalties at De Kuip after the match finished goalless following extra-time.
Lovro Mayer and Bruno Petkovic both had chances to score from the penalty spot, but Spain custodian Unai Simon saved them both. Then, Carvajal scored a cheeky goal to give La Roja their first trophy since Euro 2012 and break Croatian hearts.
The team led by Zlatko Dalic came in second at the 2018 World Cup and third in 2022. They have never won a major trophy, and captain Luka Modric was hoping that winning the Nations League would be the cherry on top of a great international career.
The win gives Spain’s new coach Luis de la Fuente a boost of confidence after he was heavily criticised in March after a loss to Scotland in Euro 2024 qualifying. It also made up for their final loss to France in 2021.
“For us it was a unique opportunity, we went out early in another tournament (at the World Cup in Qatar) and today we had to take advantage,” Real Madrid defender Carvajal told Spanish broadcaster TVE.
“We had confidence with the penalties and it went well, I knew how I was going to shoot it, and I knew I was going to be sixth… I wanted to take it Panenka style and it went well.”
Dalic said that more than 25,000 Croatian fans would go to Rotterdam, and they did. The stadium, De Kuip, was mostly a sea of red and white checkered squares, except for a small area where Spanish fans were.
In the 10th minute, the Croatians chanted Modric’s name, which matched the number on his shirt. This was a plea for him not to stop playing for his country after the tournament, as had been said.
On the pitch, Spain took the lead early, and Gavi’s shot was just wide after he worked hard to get the ball back.
Under a pink haze of smoke from Croatian flares, the game was starting to slow down a bit, but Josip Juranovic’s long pass over the top to Andrej Kramaric almost caught Spain off guard.
The striker got through on Unai Simon’s goal, but just as he was about to shoot, Aymeric Laporte did a great job diving in front of him to block the shot.
Even though there were 14 goals in the three games before, the first half ended with no goals, just like the last two Nations League finals, which were won by Portugal in 2019 and France in 2021.
Dalic’s team came out on top, and Jordi Alba, the captain of Spain, and Ivan Perisic, a wide player for Spurs who played left back, were always a threat.
The former Barcelona defender sent a dangerous cross to Asensio, who headed the ball into the top of the net. During the first 80 minutes, La Roja didn’t have a single shot on goal.
At the other end, Mario Pasalic headed wide before Petkovic came on. Petkovic was Croatia’s star in the semi-final against the Netherlands, so much so that a Croatian newspaper called him “Bruce Willis in football boots.” This time, it didn’t prove the case.
In response, Spain sent on their own match-winner in the form of Joselu, who replaced Morata, and Ansu Fati also joined the fight.
During the 90 minutes, the young Barcelona forward had the best chance to score for either team. His low shot was stopped on the line by the hard-working Perisic.
After Nacho got into a fight with Borna Sosa, Croatia asked for a penalty, but it wasn’t given. Then, Spain’s substitute Dani Olmo, who spent six years with Dinamo Zagreb, hit the post as extra time kept going in the same tight way.
Since the teams were tied, penalties were used to decide who won.
Simon stopped Mayer from winning, and Aymeric Laporte had a chance to win but hit the bar.
Athletic Bilbao’s defender Simon made a full-stretch save from Petkovic by diving to his right. This made it possible for Carvajal to start a party in Spain.
“We’re so happy, it was a really tough game and this is so difficult to do,” said Manchester City’s Champions League final goalscorer Rodri, man of the match.
“This generation promises a lot. We were very strong mentally. There are things to improve, but winning is always good — we have to celebrate.”
Photo by EPA/MAURICE VAN STEEN
