Sparkling Spain sink Czechs

Spain put one foot into the semi-finals of the European Under 21 Championship courtesy of a 2-0 win over Czech Republic.

Adrian and Mata shine in comfortable victory

Spain put one foot into the semi-finals of the European Under 21 Championship courtesy of a 2-0 victory over Czech Republic in Group B. Both sides have been tipped as possible winners of the tournament in Denmark but on the evidence of Wednesday's clash it is Spain who appear the stronger contenders. Luis Milla's side were held to a 1-1 draw by England in an opening match that saw them dominate possession but lack a cutting edge. It was a different story in Viborg, though, as Atletico Madrid-bound Adrian scored two expertly-taken goals from Juan Mata assists. The breakthrough came after 27 minutes when Valencia's Mata slipped a clever pass through to Adrian and he showed great composure to fire a shot past Tomas Vaclik. The same two players combined two minutes into the second half as Mata again released Adrian and the striker cut inside Ondrej Mazuch before curling a precise finish in off the far post. Spain continued to control proceedings as Czech Republic rarely threatened to get back into the game, although Manchester United target David De Gea was forced to make a fine save from Ondrej Celustka's header three minutes from time. The result leaves Spain in command of the group with four points from two games, while Czech Republic face a potentially decisive encounter against England on Sunday.