Iniesta welcomes 'positive' win

Spain goal hero Andres Iniesta believes their friendly victory over England sets them up nicely for next month’s crucial Euro 2008 qualifiers.

The pressure was on both teams going into Wednesday’s match following some poor recent results, but it was the Spanish who earned a morale-boosting win as England were booed off by their fans at the end of the game.

Iniesta scored the only goal after appearing as a second-half substitute, rifling in a superb shot from the edge of the box as Spain inflicted a first home defeat on England since 2003.

With Spain struggling near the foot of their Euro 2008 qualifying group and facing two vitally important home matches against Denmark and Iceland in March, Iniesta knows how imperative it was to produce a positive performance in Manchester.

“A victory like this is always important, it is always something positive and as well as the result it is very nice to score on a ground like this. It is prestigious and motivates you to continue like that,” said the Barcelona midfielder.

“Although it was a friendly match, to play against England is always important and more so because the team have given a good impression of themselves.

“(England) had a very direct style of play and with high balls, but we have kept focussed the whole time.

“The team has shown that they are good and they have the capacity to win against Denmark,” he added.

Spain coach Luis Aragones was pleased to see how well his side reacted after weathering an early England storm, although he admits they were not at the top of their game.

“We started nervously, we faced danger at the start of both halves,” he said.

“Spain have played better than this, England have been able to make some chances, but we have been good on the counter-attack.

“We have fast men, we scored a good goal and I am happy for Iniesta because we always talk about the men in the centre of midfield needing to score goals.”

The defeat for England meant Steve McClaren’s side have now failed to win any of their last four matches, scoring just one goal in the process.

However, Aragones denies they beat a poor side on Wednesday night.

“Perhaps Spain thought better, played quicker, but England are and will continue to be a good team.”