England and Spain win Euro qualifiers

Paris: A double by Danny Welbeck and Sergio Busquets' first goal in 70 appearances helped England and Spain begin their respective Euro 2016 qualifying campaigns on a winning note and start putting behind them a forgettable World Cup final.

The brace by Welbeck saw England to a 2-0 win over Switzerland in Zurich while Busquets's effort came in a 5-1 humbling of Macedonia.

There was, however, not to be a memorable evening for Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic as he failed to mark his 100th appearance for his country with a goal in the 1-1 draw with Austria - his only notable contribution a booking.

Russia were another side like Spain and England to fail to fire at the World Cup - just four years before they host them - but they too secured three points with a 4-0 home win over minnows Liechtenstein.

However, Fabio Capello's side hardly convinced as two of their goals were own-goals and another came from the penalty spot.

Capello's former charges England, though, were far more impressive against a side that succeeded in reaching the second round at the World Cup.

"I thought the way we approached the game from the first minute was exactly what we wanted, and we got our reward," England's Roy Hodgson told ITV.

"We pressured the ball well, but you need that first goal to get people to come out and attack you."

Spain had begun life after the World Cup debacle with a friendly defeat to France last week.

It left their lugubrious coach Vicente del Bosque - who survived the World Cup reverse - licking his lips at the thought of a new beginning.

"We have started the competition with three points and the performance was very good. That is the most important thing," said the 63-year-old.