To make things worse for Del Bosque, midfielder Thiago Alcantara had to be substituted for Cazorla because of a knee injury in the 25th minute, while Hodgson lost Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick in stoppage-time.
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The former West Ham and Tottenham star had recently earned his place back in the national setup after being left at home during the 2014 World Cup.
Although Hodgson was missing several key players through injury and started with captain Wayne Rooney on the bench, he would have expected the team to put up more of a fight and their 15-match unbeaten run ended with something of a whimper. “We need to perform better against France”. The captain is being rested ahead of Tuesday’s game against France so Harry Kane will lead the line on the Costa Blanca.
“You’ve got players like Welbeck, Sturridge and Theo who are out injured and it’s a huge array of talent”.
The England boss was ultimately disappointed by the manner of defeat to Spain after his team held firm in the face of sustained possession until Mario Gaspar beat Joe Hart with a sensational acrobatic volley in the 72nd minute. But the big question is: When are we going to come up against them in a competitive fixture?
“Spain are a sobering benchmark but it’s not every day you have to play away to them”. We won’t know that of course until he’s had an X-ray or a scan. “We defended well against a team who were very strong and very threatening”.
Believing the goal was offside, Hart chased after Italian referee Paolo Silvio, then confronted one of his linesmen.
The 34-year-old will return to Old Trafford to undergo further tests, but it is feared that the England global is set for a long spell on the sidelines.
“Obviously it hasn’t gone as well as it did last season for him but I think he is a fantastic player”, said the England skipper.
“On behalf of the England coaching staff and players, I would like to pass on our heartfelt condolences to the French nation at this extremely hard time”, the manager said. “We’re sticking together. We win and lose together and we’re going to the tournament the best prepared we can be, as a team, as England, and we’re going to try and win it”.
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In Buenos Aires, Argentina and Brazil drew 1-1 in their much-awaited World Cup qualifier, with neither of the traditional South American powers able to secure the victory needed to kick-start their slow start to the 2018 qualifying campaign.
