Spain 3 - Slovenia 0

Spain: Reina (Escalona 60'); Angel (Miñambres 68'), Rubén, Dani Tortolero (Mainz 46'), Antonio López; Corona, Arzu (Robles 46'); Arriaga, Jorge (Portillo 60'), Riera (Aganzo 46'); Rubén Castro. 4-2-3-1.

Goals:
1-0. 10. Rubén Castro. Following up after keeper blocked Riera free kick.
2-0. 56. Jorge (penalty). After Jorge himself pulled down by Plaznik.
3-0. 65. Portillo. Took Aganzo pass and rounded defender to score.

Spain restored some of their pride with a comfortable win in this friendly game. The co-managers Santiesteban and Ufarte used the match to try out new players, with only Arzu and Riera starting both this and the Northern Ireland tie. Las Palmas striker Rubén Castro was one of the new men, and he got off to the best possible start, nipping between two defenders to score after the keeper failed to hold on to Riera's free kick. Real Madrid defender Rubén cleared off the line a few minutes later as Slovenia came forward, but Jorge should have put his side further ahead when he shot straight at Botonjic when put through.

The Atlético Madrid forward made up for his mistake though early in the second half when he was brought down in the area by Plaznik, converting the resulting penalty himself. Portillo came on a few minutes later, and within five minutes he too joined in the fun, scoring his first international goal after coolly taking the ball round a defender before placing a shot wide of the keeper. At the other end Slovenia only tested Reina and his eventual replacement Escalona a couple of times throughout the match, and in the end it was the ideal fixture to get back the confidence for the youngsters. The only problem for the managers now is who to leave out.