Luis de la Fuente’s men want to continue the state of euphoria and debut as European champions with a victory in Belgrade
MADRID, 4 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Spanish national team will face Serbia this Thursday at the Rajko Mitic Stadium (8:45 p.m.) in the first round of the 2024-25 Nations League, a match that will be Spain’s debut after winning the European Championship in Germany and in which it will begin the defense of the title won a year ago in the Netherlands against Croatia.
It’s been just over a year and two months since Jordi Alba lifted the Nations League trophy to the skies in Rotterdam, but that has little or nothing to do with the state of euphoria that Spain and the national team are experiencing. On that occasion, despite winning the ‘final four’ in a deserved manner, there were many voices critical of the team and the coach, Luis de la Fuente. Spain had won, but they were still placed in second place in Europe and the world.
Now, after sweeping the European Championship and lifting a major tournament 12 years later, no one doubts that the national team is one of the most powerful teams in the world. Both the Nations League and the European Championship in Germany have served to bring a new generation of talented players to the forefront and have returned Spain to the top of international football. Now the challenge is even greater: to maintain the performance and repeat a title that has had three different winners in the three editions played.
The first match to demonstrate the group’s ambition will be against Serbia. The ‘little Maracana’ in Belgrade will be the stage for the return to competition of the European champions, in a duel that will not be easy for Luis de la Fuente’s team. Serbia is a team that, despite not making it past the group stage at EURO 2024, has very talented players such as Mitrovic, Vlahovic, Jovic or Milinkovic Savic, who will make things difficult for the Spanish team.
Serbia is also a team that improves its performance when playing at home. In the last 12 games it has played in front of its home fans, Serbia has only lost two of them, achieving good results such as the convincing 4-1 victory against Sweden in 2022 or the 2-2 draw against Portugal in the qualifying phase for the World Cup in Qatar.
Despite this, Spain go into the match as clear favourites, both due to the superior quality of its players and the form of the team. Luis de la Fuente’s men have not lost an official match since March 2023, when they fell at Hampden Park to Scotland (2-0). Since then, the team has had 15 consecutive victories. A cycle of triumphs lasting more than a year, which were rewarded with the titles of the Nations League and the Euro 2024.
Few changes are expected in the Spanish team compared to the starting eleven that won the European Championship in Berlin’s Olympic stadium, apart from those who have been forced to do so. The team’s undisputed goalkeeper, Unai Simón, will be out due to a wrist injury, with David Raya being the best placed to replace him.
The team’s captain, Álvaro Morata, will also be unable to play due to a quadriceps injury. He will take advantage of his absence to serve a UEFA ban imposed for chanting ‘Gibraltar is Spanish’ during the title celebrations. In his place, Joselu and Oyarzabal, the hero in the Euro Cup final, will be the options. The ‘MVP’ of the Euro Cup, Rodri, will also be absent, having been suspended for the same reason as Morata, although his replacement in the starting eleven seems much more obvious: Martín Zubimendi.
Those who will be there are Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams. Both were the two great agitators of the Spanish game during the Euro Cup, with a vertical and electric game that infected the rest of their teammates and won over the fans. It will be the first time that the two friends share minutes again with the same shirt on the pitch after the red-and-white’s failed transfer to FC Barcelona.
In addition, there are key players in the Euros such as Carvajal, Le Normand, Laporte, Cucurella and Fabián Ruiz, with the midfielder being the main question mark in the starting eleven. Two FC Barcelona players are in contention for this position: Pedri and Dani Olmo. Both the Canary Islander and the Catalan have had the best start to the championship, and the chosen one will depend on what De la Fuente is looking for from his midfielder, finding more control with Pedri and more attacking ability and scoring chances if Olmo is chosen.
TECHNICAL SHEET.
–POSSIBLE LINEUPS.
SERBIA: Rajkovic; Semic, Veljkovic, Milenkovic, Pavlovic, Terzic; Ilic, Lukic, Milinkovic Savic; Vlahovic y Mitrovic.
SPAIN: Raya; Carvajal, Le Normand, Laporte, Cucurella; Zubimendi, Fabián; Yamal, Olmo, Nico Williams; y Oyarzabal.
–REFEREE: Serdar Gozubuyuk (NED).
–STADIUM: Rajko Mitic (Belgrade).
–TIME: 20.45/La 1.