Spain 5-0 Costa Rica: David Silva strikes twice in friendly win

David Silva scored twice as Spain extended their unbeaten run to 15 matches by thrashing Costa Rica.

Full-back Jordi Alba drilled an unstoppable opener before Alvaro Morata pounced when Silva's cross was spilled.

Costa Rica's Francisco Calvo slammed a clearance against a team-mate after half-time, allowing Silva to finish.

Manchester City's Silva added a second from 18 yards after winning the ball with a slide tackle on the wing and Andres Iniesta completed the scoring.

The Barcelona midfielder ran unchallenged from the halfway line before lashing a dipping strike into the bottom corner from 25 yards.

It was a classy finish to a dominant friendly display as Costa Rica, who have qualified for the World Cup, failed to manage a shot on target at Malaga's Estadio La Rosaleda.

Spain, World Cup winners in 2010, will be among the favourites for next summer's tournament and they are now 15 matches unbeaten since Julen Lopetegui took charge as manager.

The 51-year-old former Porto boss is just the second manager in Spain's history to start this well, following Luis Aragones, who went 25 games without defeat at the start of a reign which delivered Euro 2008 success.

Silva was part of the Spain setup which claimed back-to-back European Championships either side of World Cup success. His two goals take him to 35 for his country, three behind Fernando Torres who ranks behind only Raul and David Villa in the list of all-time top scorers for Spain.

The Manchester City midfielder tormented Costa Rica for the full 90 minutes while the likes of Morata, Sergio Ramos, Gerard Pique and Sergio Busquets were taken off with Spain 2-0 up at the interval.

They now face Russia in friendly action on Tuesday when Costa Rica meet Hungary in Budapest.

The Central American side failed to win their last three Concacaf World Cup qualifiers but still progressed to the tournament for the fifth time in their history.