Joselu is Spain’s hero as they progress to the UEFA Nation’s League final after beating Italy

Spain will play Croatia in the final of the UEFA Nations League after beating Italy 2-1 in the Dutch city of Enschede this evening, Thursday, June 15.

Former Stoke City and Newcastle United striker Joselu came on as a substitute and sent the Spaniards into the final next Sunday, June 18, with a close-range finish in the 88th minute. The Espanyol star latched onto the ball after Rodri’s shot was deflected.

Spain went ahead as early as the third minute when Leonardo Bonucci was dispossessed on the edge of the penalty area by Villarreal’s Yeremy Pino. The midfielder slotted the ball beyond Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Just eight minutes later the Italians were level. Real Sociedad defender Robin le Normand’s arm got in the way of a volley from Nicolo Zaniolo and up stepped Ciro Immobile to hit the resulting penalty home.

Joselu is enjoying an incredible turnaround in the twilight years of his career. The 33-year-old has now scored three goals in as many matches for his country having only made his international debut in March.

His two spells in English football were hardly memorable yet this season he notched 16 goals in La Liga for Espanyol. Despite the club being relegated, he was only bettered by Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema and Robert Lewandowski from Barcelona.

Luis de la Fuente will be hoping that Joselu can continue his streak of goalscoring form when they meet Croatia in Rotterdam on Sunday. This will be Spain’s second consecutive UEFA Nations League final.

The Croats will be chasing their first major silverware after conquering the Netherlands on Wednesday. Finishing normal time at 2-2, they needed extra time to eventually beat the Dutch 4-2.

A notable partnership represented Spain in the middle of defence this evening. Manchester City’s Aymeric Laporte played alongside the 26-year-old debutant Robin Le Normand. Both players were born in France but changed their allegiance to Spain.