site.btaBulgaria Loses to European Champions Spain 0-4 in World Cup Qualifier

The Bulgarian national football team suffered its second loss in Group E of the World Cup qualifiers to European champion Spain on Tuesday night.

The Bulgarians were dominated throughout most of the match, having overall possession of the ball of 30%. While the Bulgarian attack did create a few goal chances, they ultimately remained fruitless.

Mikel Merino scored two headers, in both halves of the match, after crosses from Robin Le Normand and Alejandro Grimaldo, while Bulgarian defender Atanas Chernev scored an own goal in his attempt to stop a Spanish attack. The final goal came in the 90th minute, when Spain was awarded a penalty kick, and Mikel Oyarzabal capitalized on it.

With this result, Spain remains alone at the top with 12 points. Bulgaria remains at the bottom with no points after four defeats in four matches. Bulgaria's chances for second place in Group E are virtually gone.