There were a lot of questions hanging over this Spain team coming into Euro 2024, from back to front, with coach De la Fuente coming into his first tournament in charge.
And the first quarter of their opening match did not seem to be going too well, with Croatia having more of the ball, and looking to be growing in confidence.
But then a Croatia move broke down, Spain countered quickly and Morata finished confidently. The often questioned La Roja captain, who had scored just twice in the last five months for his club Atletico Madrid, had returned to form at just the right moment.
Goalkeeper Unai Simon has also had his doubters, with individual errors costing Spain at previous tournaments, but he looked safe and assured for most of the game, including when palming away Mateo Kovacic’s long-range effort at 1-0 up and punching a ball off Andrej Kramaric’s head close to goal in the second half.
Even De la Fuente’s debatable picks paid off. Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Fabian provided an excellent goal and assist, and Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella cleared off the line in the second half.
Then, however, Morata and Rodri left the pitch apparently injured in the second half and Simon made one customary error by giving the ball to Lovro Majer, leading to Croatia’s penalty.
So it was not a perfect day for Spain, but a good start nonetheless.