A double-header of fixtures away to both Italy and Albania would have been earmarked as a potential banana skin by new Spain boss Julen Lopetegui, however his side performed positively against their two main rivals in Group G.

Neither performance was quite akin to the Spain of recent years, cutting teams apart with incisive passing and pace, but both games showed signs that Lopetegui is beginning to make his mark on the team.

The Italy game gave Spain a chance to exact revenge on their Mediterranean neighbours, who ended their Euro 2016 campaign this summer, yet Spain gave a more contained and tactile performance.

Spain bossed possession for most of the game, as would be expected, with David Silva and Gerard Pique both missing half chances, before Vitolo profited from a Gianluigi Buffon error to give them the lead.

The manner in which Spain went ahead, in fact, illustrated one of the problems they have struggled with recently – excessive possession but without a cutting edge in attack. Italy, as they did at Euro 2016, allowed La Roja to have the ball but quickly looked to close down space when in range of their goal. The physical threat of Diego Costa was unlikely to concern Leonardo Bonucci and co, and it did not, with Alvaro Morata’s second-half introduction the most likely route to a second goal.

However as was the case this summer, Spain allowed Italy to sucker-punch them, this time through Daniele De Rossi’s late penalty, handing them a somewhat-frustrating point.

The issue for Lopetegui wasn’t the result as most teams in world football would view a draw at the Juventus Stadium as a job well done; it’s the lingering inability to kill games off. Spain have developed a mental block against the elite sides, which prevents them from seeing out games that previously they would have found a way to win. There is, of course, no magic solution to this issue, however under Lopetegui, Spain look to be repairing their damaged confidence.

Albania presented a different proposition for Lopetegui’s charges, given the Balkans have gone from European also-ran to a scourge of the bigger teams.

Despite weaker opposition, Spain again needed a goalkeeping error to take the lead, with Costa this time punishing a mistake from Albanian shot-stopper Etrit Berisha. However, the primary difference in this game was that Spain not only dominated possession but also created a number of chances, Berisha excellently repelling Vitolo and Thiago Alcantara.

Albania were eventually killed off by substitute Nolito’s late goal, and the performance will have pleased Lopetegui as it showed that the old panache and intensity in possession was returning.

The only real concerns for the former Porto boss will be relating to his two central defenders, Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique.

Ramos was withdrawn in the closing stages with a knee injury and is now a doubt for November’s games against Macedonia and England, while Pique’s commitment to Spain was once again questioned, this time over a bizarre row about him wearing a short-sleeved shirt.

Any issue was quickly rubbished by all involved, but the Barcelona defender appears to have reached the end of the road with Spain, announcing that he will retire after the 2018 World Cup.

Pique’s announcement comes after numerous instances that have called into question his commitment to Spain, despite amassing 85 caps and playing a starring role in La Roja’s 2010 and 2012 international glories.

La Liga - Club News