Spain opened the defence of its World Cup title with a 1-0 win at Georgia on Roberto Soldado’s 86th-minute goal on Tuesday night, while England stumbled to a 1-1 tie at home against Ukraine.
Spain, the world and European champion, has won 23 consecutive qualifiers since 2007. Soldado scored off a cross from Cesc Fabregas, who entered six minutes earlier.
“It was a hard-fought win against a rival that gave us the ball but pulled back into its area,” Soldado said, who was given a rare start up front ahead of Fernando Torres and the fit-again David Villa. “It was bewildering.”
Italy, Germany and Portugal all failed to impress despite victories on the second day of European qualifying for the 2014 tournament in Brazil.
The United States (2-1-1) moved back into a tie for its group lead in the North and Central American and Caribbean semifinals, winning 1-0 at home against Jamaica as Herculez Gomez curled in a free kick in the 55th minute.
Mexico (4-0) became the first nation to advance to next year’s six-team CONCACAF finals, winning 1-0 at home against Costa Rica on a 61st-minute goal by Javier Hernandez.