Morata saves Spain in thriller

ALVARO MORATA came off the bench to salvage Julien Lopetegui’s unbeaten record as Spain coach in an entertaining 22 draw with Colombia in Murcia yesterday.

After Edwin Cardona had cancelled out David Silva’s opener for the hosts, Radamel Falcao’s first international goal for two years had Colombia on course for a famous win.

However, Morata made his case to start Sunday’s World Cup qualifier away to Macedonia with a towering header three minutes from time to save Spain’s blushes.

“I always want to play for Spain,” Morata, who joined up with the squad earlier than scheduled after helping Real Madrid retain the Champions League against his old side Juventus on Saturday, told Telecinco.

“We had them on the ropes at the end and (the win) escaped us, but it is a good sign because this a game that could easily be the quarter or semifinals of a World Cup.”

Lopetegui ran the risk of an adverse result as Nacho was the only Real player to start, whilst David de Gea, Sergio Busquets and Diego Costa were also left on the bench.

Colombia boss Jose Pekerman gave James Rodriguez and Juan Cuadrado the chance to bounce back from their Champions League final disappointment – Rodriguez was left out of the Real squad, whilst Juventus’s Cuadrado was sentoff just 17 minutes after coming on as a substitute.

Spain went ahead with characteristic panache on 22 minutes when Silva finished off a brilliant team move to score his seventh international goal in Lopetegui’s short reign.

Iago Aspas freed Pedro Rodriguez down the right and his low cross was turned home by Silva despite the best efforts of Arsenal goalkeeper David Ospina.

Colombia were gifted a route back into the game when their equaliser arrived five minutes before half-time, though, as a mix-up between Reina and Cesar Azpilicueta allowed Cardona to loop into an unguarded net.

Falcao (caricature) looked to have inflicted a rare home defeat on Spain when he powered home Rodriguez’s corner 10 minutes into the secondhalf.

However, Morata, another player heavily linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu in the coming weeks, extended Lopetegui’s unbeaten run to nine games in charge with a brilliant header to turn Saul Niguez’s cross into the far corner.

Meanwhile in Nice, a bizarre own goal by defender Jose Gimenez early in the game set Italy on the way to a convincing 3-0 win over Uruguay.

Two more goals in the last 10 minutes, a header from Brazilian-born forward Eder and a Daniele De Rossi penalty, condemned the South Americans to their fifth successive defeat while Italy extended their unbeaten run to nine games.

Italy were gifted a seventh minute lead when Lorenzo Insigne launched a long ball forward, Andrea Belotti chested it down with his back to goal and Gimenez took it off his foot but inadvertently rifled a shot past goalkeeper Fernando Muslera.

Uruguay, also missing their other key forward Edinson Cavani through injury, took control in the second half and penned Italy into their half.

Eder diverted Manolo Gabbiadini’s shot into the goal with a close-range header in the 83rd minute and De Rossi scored from a penalty in stoppage time after Stephan El Shaarawy was tripped by the hapless Gimenez. – Reuters