Seville, Spain June 23 (AP): A bizarre blunder by the goalkeeper helped Spain find its scoring touch at the European Championship.
And it also helped them advance to the round of 16.
An embarrassing own-goal by goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka in the first half put Spain on the way to a 5-0 victory Wednesday, and it came only minutes after the host team had missed another penalty and wasted more scoring chances.
Dúbravka saved that early penalty kick from Álvaro Morata but then clumsily knocked the ball into his own net after it ricocheted high into the air off a shot by Pablo Sarabia.
Aymeric Laporte added to Spain’s lead before halftime, and Sarabia, Ferran Torres and another own-goal in the second half made it five for “La Roja,” which had been facing elimination in front of its fans.
The victory allowed Spain to advance in second place in Group E with five points, two fewer than Sweden, which defeated Poland 3-2 in the other match. The result eliminated Slovakia, which needed a draw to guarantee its place in the next round.