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Serbia v Spain
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Kick Off: Thursday 5th September at 19:45
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Competition: Nations League
Serbia and Spain will be pitted against each other in Group 4 of League A in the 2024/25 Nations League, alongside Denmark and Switzerland. Spain will be looking to defend their Nations League title, which they secured in the previous campaign, and will compete in their first game since achieving a record fourth European Championship title in July.
Serbia come into this match as underdogs but will be looking to cause an upset in Belgrade. They have an extremely young and dynamic squad – goalkeeper Aleksandar Jovanovic is the only player over 30 years old to have been called up for these Nations League fixtures.
Serbia v Spain Best Bets
Spain scored 15 goals from their seven games at Euro 2024, netting 2.14 goals per game from an average of 1.76 xGF. Lamine Yamal was pivotal to the success of Luis de la Fuente’s side, as he picked up the Young Player of the Tournament award, after registering four assists and a goal. He has replicated that incredible form under Hansi Flick for Barcelona, starting the season with four assists and a goal from four games. With the visitors posting a potent attacking lineup, goals are certainly on the agenda, and backing over 1.5 Spain goals looks like a solid bet.
Serbia will have to contend without key players for this fixture, including their captain and talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic. It is not ideal for manager Dragan Stojkovic, as he will select a starting XI significantly different from what he chose at Euro 2024. Given how disappointing Serbia were in that tournament, this is set to be an extremely tough match for them to kick off the Nations League. Spain (-1) handicap looks to offer particularly good value here.
📂 Serbia v Spain Cheat Sheet
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📊 Serbia Form and Stats
Serbia were eliminated in the group stages at Euro 2024, finishing bottom of Group C with just two points. They lost to England before back-to-back stalemates against Slovenia and Denmark halted their progression in the tournament. Despite boasting some high profile attacking talent in the form of Mitrovic, Dusan Vlahovic and Dusan Tadic, Serbia managed just one goal in the competition.
All three of the aforementioned players will not feature in the upcoming Nations League matches for Serbia. Captain Mitrovic appears to be carrying an injury, while Tadic was openly critical of manager Dragan Stojkovic at the Euros, so has decided against representing his country.
Both Vlahovic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic will be absent too, as they have been withdrawn due to injury. All four were important players under Stojkovic at Euro 2024, so it will be interesting to see how he adapts the forward line. As it stands, Luka Jovic could be handed a sizeable role, given that he is the most senior attacking player.
📊 Spain Form and Stats
Spain’s triumph at Euro 2024 was nothing short of spectacular, as they claimed the title with a perfect record of seven straight victories (beating Germany in extra time). It was entirely deserved, as La Roja had a testing run to the final in Berlin.
They edged past Germany in the quarter-finals, before overcoming France in the semi-finals. The final against England looked set to go to extra time before Mikel Oyarzabal poked home the winning goal in the 86th minute. La Roja made history by scoring 15 goals in the competition – more than any other team in Euros history.
A key figure in Spain’s success was Rodri, who was deservedly named the Player of the Tournament. However, Rodri’s participation in upcoming matches remains uncertain. The Manchester City star has not yet featured for Pep Guardiola this season, as he continues to recover from an injury sustained in the Euro 2024 final. He was listed on the bench against West Ham, so could be close to full fitness.
Regardless of Rodri’s availability, Spain have shown they have an excellent alternative in Martin Zubimendi. The Real Sociedad man put in a composed display after replacing Rodri at half time in the final, and has brushed off links to Liverpool over the summer.
⚔️ Serbia v Spain Head-to-Head
There is very little history between these two nations, they have met only once since Serbia’s split from Montenegro, that came in 2012, as Spain won 2-0 against Serbia in a friendly held in Switzerland.
Spain faced Serbia’s predecessor, Serbia & Montenegro twice, both during World Cup qualifying in 2005, with both games finished in a draw, first finishing 0-0 in Belgrade and then 1-1 in Madrid later that same year.
Prior to that, Spain faced Yugoslavia, of which Serbia was a part of, on 19 occasions, the last of which came in 2000, where Spain famously beat them 4-3 at Euro 2000, with two goals in added time to turn the game on its head.
These games have little bearing on today’s fixture, but overall Spain hold an all-time record of 10 wins, 7 draws and 5 losses against Serbia and the various nations they have been a part of through the years.
Football Betting Predictions at Andy’s Bet Club
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* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.
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