{
  "id": 12307595,
  "title": "PREVIEW: De la Fuente’s Spain Chase 11th Consecutive Win with Croatia Up Next",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/06/preview-de-la-fuentes-spain-chase-11th-consecutive-win-with-croatia",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-06T05:25:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/preview-la-fuente-spain-chase-052500040.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Croatia prepare to face Spain in Split for the UEFA Nations League reverse fixture, with La Roja leading Group A3. In their first encounter on September 29th, Spain won 4-1 at Seville's Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán. Lamine Yamal scored for Spain early on before Dion Beljo equalised for Croatia. Marc Pubill and another Yamal goal secured the win for Spain.\n\nOn their Nations League campaign kickoff, Croatia defeated Czechia 2-1 at Prague's Fortuna Arena but lost to Spain and England. They conceded 11 goals and scored only one goal in those matches. On October 3rd, England thrashed Croatia 7-0 at Rijeka Stadium, Croatia's worst result. Spain again dominated in their September 30th victory over Czechia 3-1, keeping Yamal's goal early again.\n\nIvan Smolčić will miss the upcoming match due to illness. Spain will play without Fabián Ruiz, who returned home to welcome his newborn son. Croatia aims to bounce back after back-to-back defeats. De la Fuente's team has gone 42 matches without defeat, aiming for a 43rd clean sheet. The clash will take place at Poljud Stadium on Tuesday, October 6th at 19:45 BST.",
  "summary": "Croatia host Spain in Split for the reverse fixture in the UEFA Nations League, with La Roja sitting top of Group A3 and the Vatreni coming off back-to-back defeats.In their first meeting on 29 Septem...",
  "key_points": [
    "Spain leads Group A3 in UEFA Nations League",
    "De la Fuente's team unbeaten in 42 matches",
    "Croatia faces Spain in reverse fixture on October 6th"
  ],
  "editors_take": "Spain's ongoing unbeaten run and Croatia's recent heavy defeats suggest La Roja are well-positioned to extend their lead in Group A3 and Croatia's struggles to regain form.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}