It has been a shocking return to mediocrity for Croatia since they reached the World Cup final in Russia just a few of months ago.
They were thrashed 6-0 by Spain in the reverse fixture and were held to a draw at home by England which was largely due to poor finishing from Gareth Southgate’s men.
Croatia have beaten only Jordan recently and that was a 1-0 win, so their fans will be expecting them to deliver something when in-form Spain come to town for this game.
One thing that has left Croatia’s game is their ability to keep themselves in games whether they have gone a goal down or not, and they will need that in this game if they want to get a result.
Spain meanwhile, are rebuilding themselves under Luis Enrique after a disastrous World Cup campaign in Russia.
The Spaniards have started this competition well, beating England at Wembley before mauling Croatia in Elche.
They have shown that they have arguably the best attacking team in Europe at the moment, but their defence leaves much to be desired.
Spain were beaten by England at home in their last game and that should fill Croatia with confidence that they are not as invincible as they appeared when these teams first met in the reverse fixture.
Croatia have beaten Spain just once in the last 6 meetings between these teams, with Spain winning 4 and the other ending in a stalemate.
Bookmakers have priced Spain up as steady favourites to come out on top while goal markets suggest this could be a low-scoring affair as under 2.5 goals is currently trading odds-on.
Results of each team’s last 5 matches across all leagues and competitions
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