Croatia vs Spain Preview

The 2022/23 Nations League season will wrap up this Sunday when Croatia and Spain meet at the famous De Kuip stadium in Rotterdam.

Croatia booked their place in this final showpiece when they defeated the Netherlands in this venue. After holding the Dutch Oranje Stars 2-2 in normal time, goals from Bruno Petkovic and the evergreen Luka Modric gave them a 4-2 win.

By doing so, they became just the second side since the turn of the decade to topple the Dutch hosts on home soil. For that reason, they should come into this final in high spirits and with the determination of finally winning a piece of silverware having come close in their last two World Cup appearances.

Although they’re here now, it’s been a long and bumpy road to the final for Croatia. They opened their campaign with a defeat and a draw against Austria and France before a pair of wins over Denmark and France helped them escape the group.

But regardless of their inspirational journey here, Zlatko Dalić’s side face a tough test against a Spain side they’ve found tricky opponents over the years (W3, D1, L5).

La Roja beat a much more fancied Euro 2020 winner Italy 2-1 to emerge candidates for this final–their eighth major final.

Luis De la Fuentes’s side have won four of their seven finals, but this one evokes a sense of Déjà vu, with Spain defeating Italy 2-1 before losing the final to France by the same scoreline in the 2021 UNL edition.

The new boss will be desperate to claim the gold medal in this tournament as that will solidify his reputation and give his side much-needed momentum ahead of the European Championship in Germany next year.

The new manager has overseen two wins and one defeat in the three games he’s managed so far, so he will not be afraid of a Croatia side who they have beaten twice in the last five head-to-head meetings (D1, L2).