Seeking to score in a 29th successive WC qualifier, La Roja started the evening in a positive manner, with Lamine Yamal heavily involved as Bulgaria struggled to settle.
In turn, it wasn’t long before Mikel Oyazarbal slotted home the opener, doing so with all due professionalism when he latched onto a pinpoint Martín Zubimendi pass inside the box.
And the reigning European champions only continued to control proceedings from there, shutting down their opponents at every opportunity – just two touches from La Roja keeper Unai Simon in the opening 20 minutes told its own story.
Radoslav Kirilov’s shot grazed the outside of the post with Bulgaria’s first attack of note, and that saw the decibel level from the home support rise significantly.
It was a temporary reprieve, however, and the hosts’ switch to a defensive 5-4-1 backfired on the half-hour mark, when a left-footed piledriver from Marc Cucurella doubled Spain’s lead and gave the Chelsea man his first international goal.
The onslaught only continued approaching half-time, and Mikel Merino powerfully headed home a third, before seeing a certain fourth cleared off the line by Emil Tsenov.
The match was already a training ground exercise for the visitors by this point, but there was no let-up beyond the break, as Merino saw another shot cannon back off the bar – Spain’s 17th attempt with just 53 minutes gone – whilst Pedri was being afforded far too much time and space in midfield.
Reflecting an almost embarrassing disparity in resources from the bench, Spain duo Rodri and Dani Carvajal were subbed on after an hour for their first international appearances in a year, and both were soon involved in a sensational passing move which deserved better than Nico Williams’ wayward finish.
With nothing to lose, Bulgaria tried to restore a modicum of pride late on, and Vladimir Nikolov finally escaped the clutches of the Spanish defence with a quarter of an hour to play, but his tardiness in possession allowed Dean Huijsen to quickly shut him down.
Marin Petkov – with just Bulgaria’s third touch in their opponents’ box – also failed to bear any fruit.
Beaten long before the final whistle, and still a shadow of the team that ended up fourth back in the 1994 WC finals, Ilian Iliev’s side still have only two wins from their last 16 competitive fixtures to celebrate.
Meanwhile, another easy win for La Roja preserves an unbelievable streak, which – in a record dating back to 1993 – still sees them beaten just once across their last seven World Cup qualifying campaigns (W52, D14).
Flashscore Man of the Match: Pedri (Spain)
Click here for player ratings and more
