Spain vs Croatia Preview

Spain will begin their quest for a record-breaking fourth European Championship title this Saturday when they face Croatia at the Berlin Olympiastadion.

Both teams are arguably the strongest teams in Group B which also has defending champions Italy and lowly Albania. But it’s Luis de la Fuente’s side who enter as the favourites for this clash, mostly considering that his side breezed through their qualifying group in top spot, winning seven of their eight matches (L1) whilst conceding just five goals. La Roja also added to that feat by winning both of their final two friendly matches in preparation for this tournament whilst netting exactly five goals in each against Andorra and Northern Ireland.

However, with just one clean sheet across their last six internationals (W4, D1, L1), their defence remains a potential weakness as they hunt success this summer. Their poor defending has also been exposed frequently in recent head-to-head clashes, with Croatia twice scoring three goals across their last three meetings (ESP: W2, L1).

Unlike Spain, Croatia struggled in the qualifying round, finishing runners-up to Turkey in their group after taking 16 points from eight matches (W5, D1, L2). But they have kept their form ahead of this tournament alive by winning each of their four friendly outings before heading to Germany. The last game in that sequence was an impressive 2-1 victory over Portugal last time out.

Despite poor outings in last year’s European Championship, Croatia has always punched above their weight and they look set to go again this time. Their group is tough, but they will fancy their chances of qualifying from the ‘group of death’ having qualified from each of their last four major tournament groups.