BERLIN (Reuters) – First-half goals from Alvaro Morata, Fabian Ruiz and Dani Carvajal set Spain on course for a comprehensive 3-0 win over Croatia giving the 2008 and 2012 champions the perfect start to their Euro 2024 campaign on Saturday.
Morata broke the deadlock in the 29th minute as the Croatians lost the ball up front and Fabian split the defence with a perfect pass for the Spanish captain to surge through and slot the ball past Dominik Livakovic.
Fabian added the second himself three minutes later and defender Carvajal added a third just before the break as Lamine Yamal, the youngest player ever to appear at the Euros, picked him out to score and effectively end the game as a contest.
Croatia had a goal ruled out when Bruno Petkovic’s missed penalty was played back into his path for him to score, but the strike was chalked off due to Croatian players encroaching during his original penalty kick as they slumped to a bitter defeat.
(Reporting by Philip O’Connor, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
