Croatia had opened the scoring and Spain spent the first hour chasing the game. By the time Mikel Merino volleyed in his second in the 88th minute to seal a 2-1 win in Split, the result was safe, Spain’s quarter-final place was secured and the world-record unbeaten run was intact. Yamal still walked to the bench scowling.
Pedri was asked about his Barcelona team-mate in the mixed zone.
“Another great game, he lacked aim, that finesse of previous games, but he goes away very angry when he plays a good game and wastes those chances that we have seen him have today, that he has gone to the bench a bit angry,” Pedri told reporters.
The 19-year-old came off midway through the second half without scoring. He had Spain’s clearest chance of the first half when Pedri threaded him through on goal, only for Dominik Livakovic to block the shot.
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‘A guy who demands a lot of himself’
Pedri framed the sulk as a sign of standards, not of a rift.
“He is a guy who demands a lot of himself, he always wants to score, he always wants to contribute things to the team.”
“Even if he doesn’t score or assist, he contributes a lot because he attracts many players. He is a differential player who gives us a lot and luckily we have him in the national team and at Barca.”
Yamal had arrived in Split off three goals and an assist in his previous three Spain appearances, including a brace against Croatia in Seville a week earlier.
Merino rescues 10-man Croatia test
The match itself was closer than the group table suggests. Ivan Perisic put Croatia ahead in the 17th minute, held the lead through the interval and only lost his footing when he was sent off in the 79th for tripping Marc Cucurella, a second yellow that reduced Croatia to ten men.
Merino, on at half-time, equalised in the 61st and finished a Dani Olmo pass with a controlled volley past Livakovic two minutes from time.
The win extended Spain’s unbeaten run to 42 matches, 32 victories and 10 draws, and clinched a Nations League quarter-final place alongside Portugal.
The player answering critics
Yamal’s mood in Split sits inside a louder week. After the 4-1 win over Croatia in Seville on 29 September, he addressed the recent noise about his form directly: “A month ago you told me I was sick, that you didn’t know what was wrong with me. Now, I am serene and I have fun.”
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Spain learn their quarter-final opponents in the draw later this month.
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