England, Spain's great challenge: "It may be the most difficult game and that motivates us"

• 1-0 to Denmark Spain finds the key to the quarterfinals

• 40 years of the European Championship From the Swedish triumph in the mud to the current 100 million

"How beautiful football is when you win. 2:00 in the morning and post-match in the European Championship against Denmark."

With dawn upon us,

and

were still on the stretcher receiving care from the team's physios.

One of them published on social networks the image that spoke of the effort required to seal the pass to the quarterfinals and the satisfaction of having achieved it, no matter how much England plays now.

"That the sessions do not stop at this time."

Spain was worth the tie that came as standard but did not breathe until in the 90th minute

finished off a cross against

.

The Spanish team has made friends with heights in this tournament: of the five goals they have scored, four have been headed.

And this bought two minutes of tranquility, which sound few but knew eternal.

Only then did Denmark kneel.

The match left pending tasks for

's team .

The circulation of the ball was somewhat more fluid in the second half but it is still in the 'needs to improve' section.

It would have dissolved the rivals to go out and wait for Spain (Denmark changed its 3-4-3 for a 5-4-1) or at least it would have made the pulse more digestible.

And as a consequence of one, the other: in the three games the greatest danger came from the counterattack.

minimum target

The Spanish team has achieved its minimum objective, reaching the quarterfinals in one of the most complicated groups of the first phase.

He has overcome that sieve in the four editions he has played, but now it's time to break down a new wall: he has never overcome a qualifying round in European Championships or World Cups.

Spain debuted in the continental tournament reaching the semi-finals in 1997, but with an eight-team format in which the top teams in each group advanced to that penultimate rung.

And in the last two editions they got out in the quarterfinals: in 2013 against Norway (ultimately runner-up) and in 2017 on penalties against Austria.

There was also no luck at the 2019 World Cup, where they fell in the round of 16 against eventual champions the United States.

Now the host, England, one of the main favorites for the title, awaits.

"We love that it's against England"

Vilda downplayed in a press conference the magnitude of the challenge that Spain has ahead.

England have been fearsome in the group stage, with plenty of victories, 14 goals for and none against.

"It may be the most difficult game you can have in the European Championship. Seeing the level at which he is playing and with all the public in his favor, it is something that motivates us. We are a team of challenges. We love that these quarters are against England".

There is no choice but to look ahead.

After all, it is a condemnation that has already been taken for granted since the defeat against Germany: by then the English were already assured of first place in their group (with an 8-0 rout of Norway included) and Spain could only go through as second.

England have been semi-finalists in the last three major tournaments (the 2015 and 2019 World Cups, and the 2017 European Championship), and they seem better prepared than ever to break that ceiling.

Her danger is led by

, a great star of the first phase with five goals, the same as all of Spain.

"We warned from the beginning that it was going to be very difficult and that is the way it is. Every day we have a difficulty and we continue to overcome them. But we have never set limits and we are not going to do it now", sentenced the captain, Irene Paredes, before passing for the stretcher

Conforms to The Trust Project criteria

Know more

• football