A Marcus Rashford goal sandwiched between a pair of finishes from Sterling had Gareth Southgate's men 3-0 up at the break, though Harry Kane – the architect of two and involved in all three – was their leading light.

Things were more one-sided due to Spain's desperation after the interval and Paco Alcacer scored his 10th goal in six games for club and country just before the hour, but England held firm to claim their first victory in UEFA’s new competition.

Spain was quick to apply pressure, but England looked promising and scored a well-worked opener 16 minutes in – Sterling blasting into the top-right corner of David de Gea's net after Kane and Rashford had combined to put the Manchester City forward in the clear.

Rashford was then the man to apply the finishing touch 13 minutes later, as he slotted home after Kane's inch-perfect pass.

Things got even worse for Spain - who had won the reverse fixture 2-1 at Wembley - just before the break.

Ross Barkley's sumptuous ball over their backline found the run of Kane, who squared across goal for Sterling to apply an easy finish.

Spain unsurprisingly improved in the second half and Alcacer pulled one back shortly after his arrival in the 57th minute, losing his marker to head in from a corner.

Jordan Pickford was then lucky to escape unpunished, as he appeared to pull back Rodrigo Moreno in the area after being robbed of possession by the Valencia forward, who was denied a goal by the goalkeeper's last-ditch slide tackle.

Sergio Ramos did find the net when heading in Dani Ceballos' cross deep into added time, but it was too little, too late for the hosts as England successfully clinched a first away win against Spain since 1987.