Sergio Ramos Says England Are 'World Class' After Nations League Win over Spain

Spain captain Sergio Ramos has called England "world class" following their 3-2 win over La Roja in the UEFA Nations League on Monday. 

The Three Lions were excellent in the first period at the Estadio Benito Villamarin, surging into a three-goal lead before the break and then holding off a Spain fightback in the second period. 

Afterwards, the Real Madrid legend said he was happy with the way the team bounced back after their sluggish first 45 minutes but praised the away side, too, per Football Espana.

"It's a shame because it was our objective to round off a great run of games," he said. "It didn't go as planned, but now we have one more game to put all our tension into. England are world-class opponents with some very dangerous players. We had to forget the first half and turn it around in the time it took them to go 3-0 up."

The visitors showed why they made it to the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup in the summer with a blistering first-half display, with two goals from Raheem Sterling either side of Marcus Rashford's finish putting them in a commanding position.

In the end, that onslaught was the bedrock of what was a historic result for Gareth Southgate's side, per Sky Sports Statto:

Joe Prince-Wright of NBC Sports commented on how young the victorious England team was in Seville too:

Ramos, although he scored the second of Spain's goals with the final touch of the game, was part of a defence that was pulled to pieces at times by Sterling, Rashford and England skipper Harry Kane.

In was a display not in keeping with the way in which the 2010 world champions have operated since Luis Enrique took charge earlier in the year. In their previous two Nations League matches they were outstanding, beating Croatia 6-0 and England 2-1 at Wembley.

It was a match that showed there is still a lot of work for the new coach to do. Spanish football journalist David Cartlidge suggested this result should prevent complacency moving forward:

For England it was another indicator that the team is moving in the right direction under Southgate, as they play with a vibrancy that has been absent for long spells in previous Three Lions outfits. The praise from Ramos, as such, is warranted.

Following their shock run to the semi-finals at the World Cup there was a sense of achievement, although this is a group of players that appear keen to show that their performances in Russia represented the start of a journey, not the culmination of one.