Spain fine-tunes its defense: debut without conceding after eight matches with goals conceded

The Euro Cup debut against Portugal brought home the names of Alexia , Vicky López, and Esther, who scored against the Portuguese, but in a secondary role, no less important although less impressive, was Spain's defensive structure. For the first time in the last nine matches, the national team kept a clean sheet. In fact, in the previous 14 matches, both official and friendly, they only kept a clean sheet against South Korea (5-0) last November.

Furthermore, the Spanish team broke their poor run with Nanclares in goal, a regular backup to Cata Coll, who was sidelined with tonsillitis and also missed training yesterday, and without another key player, the suspended Irene Paredes, replaced by María Méndez. Spain gave the Portuguese team almost no chances, with just one shot against them.

In the previous 14 matches leading up to the Euro Cup, Spain had only kept a clean sheet against South Korea, also with Nanclares

“I found out I was playing hours before the game. I've been incredibly calm. This team makes it so easy. The important thing is the win and a clean sheet,” said the Athletic Club goalkeeper after playing her third senior match in Bern, her first competitive one. Interestingly, her debut for Spain came against the Koreans in the previous match without conceding a goal.

Read also

Defensive weakness took its toll on the Spanish team at the Paris Games. The Olympics, which saw the team defeated by Germany (0-1) in the third-and-fourth-place match, ended inconsolably, largely due to concessions at the back. In the French capital, Spain found themselves two goals down in the quarterfinals against Colombia, only to make amends in the last-minute penalty shootout. In the semifinals against Brazil, the medal slipped away after conceding four goals (2-4). In both matches, Spain was penalized by falling behind on the scoreboard.

“Clean sheets are essential. We've put a lot of emphasis on defensive work, on how to do it in an organized way from a collective perspective.” Montse Tomé Spain Coach

"Clean sheets are fundamental. We've put a lot of emphasis on defensive work, on how to do it in an organized way as a team (...) Adri (Nanclares) is a goalkeeper we've been following for a long time. She's done a great job," said coach Montse Tomé after the tournament debut, aware that the dream of winning the European Championship depends, first and foremost, on fine-tuning her defense.