Merino Gets First Hat-trick as Spain Roast Turkey 6-0

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente hailed his "insatiable generation" of players, after Mikel Merino's hat-trick helped La Roja thrash hosts Turkey 6-0 in a World Cup qualifier on Sept 7.

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KONYA - Spain coach Luis de la Fuente hailed his "insatiable generation" of players, after Mikel Merino's hat-trick helped La Roja thrash hosts Turkey 6-0 in a World Cup qualifier on Sept 7.

The hosts had no answer to Spain's dominance, undone time and again by the visitors' speed and finesse, with a helpless Turkish defence torn apart on every counter-attack.

Said de la Fuente: "There is a lot of room for improvement because we have the potential to do so. I can't imagine how far we can go.

"This generation is insatiable. They always want to win and be better. They make me very happy."

"We have players with extraordinary speed for counter-attacks. What we do is facilitate, develop that idea, and encourage those situations."

The European champions remained firmly in control of Group E.

They lead the group with six points from two matches, while Turkey and Georgia sit on three points from the same. Georgia beat Bulgaria 3-0 earlier on Sept 7.

The visitors struck early as Pedri found the net in the sixth minute, slotting past goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir.