England 2 Spain 3: Three Lions their own worst enemy at times, but a better way to lose

Spain came to Wembley and won the opening game of this year's Nations League 3-2 but there is no shame in that. They are after all, rather good – winners of their last two major tournaments and now unbeaten in 39 matches.

What will annoy England is that they helped a team who did not need it along the way with some sloppy play out from the back.

That, and the fact that if Harry Kane had buried his 53rd-minute penalty, it could have been different. Certainly there was only one team who responded to that moment as they might want to.

But after going out of the World Cup semi-finals as meekly as they did two months earlier, at least if England were going to fail, this was the way to do it. For all their failings defensively, they scored twice as many goals in 90 minutes as winners Spain conceded at the World Cup in a game worthy of the 84,525-strong crowd.

Very early on, England tiki-taka-ed themselves into trouble.

Even with nine World Cup squad members left out of the squad and others withdrawing through injury, ten of the starting XI had been in North America.

But the new cycle feel came from the change of goalkeeper, Leeds United's James Trafford preferred to Jordan Pickford in goal.

Trafford conceded the third quickest goal England have ever let in at Wembley, but he was blameless.

The culprit was Marc Guehi, turning back into trouble deep in his own half and presenting Lamine Yamal with a chance the wunderkid was never likely to give Trafford much chance from. There were less than two minutes gone.

England did not learn their lesson but crucially, did not pay the price again.

Miles Lewis-Skelly, the only new face, in central midfield, gave the ball away deep to Marc Cucurella in the eighth minute, but luckily for him the ball in was cut out by Ezri Konsa.

Ferran Torres looked suspiciously offside when he broke through in the 16th minute but Trafford came off his line, stretched out his left boot and saved.

Eleven minutes later it was a similar scenario when Elliot Anderson gave the ball away, but this time the man whose previous Spain appearance saw him score the winner in the World Cup final missed the target.

Trafford insisted afterwards he touched a Dani Olmo shot around a post after the Spaniard being played through by an exquisite Yamal flick – although he was never going to argue with the decision to award a goalkick.

Spain's profligacy would cause them unnecessary discomfort.

Around the half-hour mark, England started to look more dangerous, Anderson failing to catch his volley cleanly, Bukayo Saka's follow-up shot spooned over. Saka turned Cucurella but his shot was blocked.

England scored twice in four minutes.

They broke from a 36th-minute corner through their two Spanish-based players. Barcelona's Anthony Gordon fed Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham and continued his run, finishing calmly.

Barely a minute after curling a good chance wide, Kane headed Nico O'Reilly's cross in off Cucurella.

England started the second half positively and should have got their reward when Rodri fouled Jude Bellingham in the penalty area after 51 minutes. Referee Davide Massa initially though it was not a foul but was persuaded otherwise by the video evidence. Kane smashed his spot kick against the crossbar.

Yamal ought to have punished them, Alex Baena did.

The substitute's lovely backheel set up a chance a player with Yamal's Ballon d'Or potential ought to have finished but when he did not, Baena took matters into his own hands, curling the ball into the net a minute later when O'Reilly sloppily gave up possession.

Having been reassuringly good with his feet until then, Trafford caught the bug. He recovered his own heavy touch before it could embarrass him but soon later picked out Yamal for a blocked shot.

At least Spain's winner was their own work, two lovely straight balls picking out Mikel Oyarzabal – whose goal won the 2024 European Championship final - for an unerring finish.

Yamal ballooned a good chance after a give-and-go with Olmo, Bellingham – now wearing the captain's armband after Trafford's club-mate Dominic Calvert-Lewin came on for Kane – shot straight at Simon, then saw another effort right at the death to be tipped over.

It needed a good bit of O'Reilly defending to stop Spain scoring a fourth as the game refused to drift into nothingness.

In the end, England had to settle for defeat but it felt much less of a footballing disaster than the last one.

England: Trafford; Quansah, Konsa, Guehi (Branthwaite 89), O'Reilly; Anderson, Lewis-Skelly (Garner 70); Saka, Bellingham, Gordon (Rogers 70); Kane.

Unused substitutes: Pickford, Alexander-Arnold, Scott, Chalobah, Hall, Calvert-Lewin, Gibbs-White, Eze, Steele.

Spain: Simon; García, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella; Rodri, Ruiz (Pedri 70); Yamal, Olmo (Merino 82), Williams (Baena 54); Torres (Oyarzabal 54).

Unused substitutes: Raya, Huijsen, Grimaldo, Lopez, Pino, Pubill, Martínez, Zubimendi.

Referee: D Massa (Italy).