Spain will host Serbia at Estadio Nuevo Arcangel in the UEFA Nations League on Tuesday night, looking to continue their impressive start to the tournament.
Spain are coming into the game against Serbia on the back of a win over Denmark on Saturday. La Roja are unbeaten in the UEFA Nations League so far, and they will be the favourites to grind out all three points here as well.
Meanwhile, Serbia are coming into this game on the back of a 2-0 win over Switzerland, which came after a defeat against Denmark. Tuesday’s assignment will be an uphill challenge for the away side, and it remains to be seen whether they can grind out a positive result.
Serbia managed to hold Spain to a goal draw in Belgrade in their opening group game, and they will be hoping for a similar result here. Spain are the better team here, but they will have to be at their best to grind out all three points tomorrow. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at hte encounter ahead of the latest meeting.
Team News & Tactics
Spain
The home team will be without prodigious young attacker Lamine Yamal, who is struggling with muscle overload. Spain are likely to shape up in a 4-3-3 formation against Serbia, with David Raya in goal.
Pedro Porro and Marc Cucurella will be deployed as the full-backs here, and they will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Meanwhile, Dani Vivian will start alongside Aymeric Laporte at the heart of the defence.
Martin Zubimendi will anchor the midfield for Spain and look to control the tempo of the game from the deep. Pedri and Fabian Ruiz will add creativity and drive to the side. Finally, Alvaro Morata will lead the line for Spain here with Mikel Oyarzabal and Alex Baena on either side of him.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Raya; Porro, Vivian, Laporte, Cucurella; Ruiz, Zubimendi, Pedri; Baena, Morata, Oyarzabal
Serbia
The visitors will be without the services of Andrija Zivkovic. In addition, Sasa Lukic has pulled out from the squad after picking up a knock. Predrag Rajkovic will start in goal for Serbia, behind a back three of Strahinja Erakovic, Nikola Milenkovic, and Strahinja Pavlovic.
Kosta Nedeljkovic and Veljko Birmancevic will start as the wing backs. They will look to protect the back three and hit Spain on the counter. Nemanja Maksimovic and Marko Grujic will add physicality and defensive cover in the middle of the park.
Nikola Cumic and Lazar Samardzic will start as the attacking midfielders and they will look to add creativity and drive to the side. Finally, Aleksandar Mitrovic will lead the line for Serbia against Spain this midweek.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Rajkovic; Erakovic, Milenkovic, Pavlovic; Nedeljkovic, Maksimovic, Grujic, Birmancevic; Samardzic, Cumic; Mitrovic
Key Stats
- Three of the last four matches between these two teams have ended in a draw.
- Spain have picked up five wins and a draw from their last six matches in all competitions.
- Serbia have picked up just one win from the last six matches in all competitions.
- Serbia have failed to score in four of the last six matches in all competitions.
- Serbia are yet to win any of their last four meetings against Spain.
Player to Watch
Pedro Porro
The Spanish full-back is our key player to watch out for. He will look to keep things compact defensively and help out in the final third. In the absence of Lamine Yamal, Spain will need to rely on their full-backs to create opportunities from the wide areas. Porro has been in impressive form this season for club and country, and he could cause all sorts of problems for the Serbian defence from the wide areas.
Prediction
Spain 1-0 Serbia
Serbia managed to hold onto a draw the last time these two sides met, and they will be hoping to shut out the opposition once again. However, Spain are the better team on paper, and they have the quality to break down the Serbian defence.
La Roja will be desperate to pick up a win at home, and they have the quality to carve out opportunities as well. A narrow win for the home team is on the cards here.
However, Spain will have to be at their best. They cannot afford to underestimate the opposition here. Serbia have a quality team, and they know what it takes to shut out the opposition attack. They will look to approach the game defensively and hit Spain on the break.
