UEFA Nations League: Will Spain Step on the Gas against Serbia?

Spain vs Serbia

Luis de La Fuente’s Spain continue their UEFA Nations League campaign with a home tie against Serbia on Tuesday, knowing that a win will keep them top of Group A4 and their destiny in their own hands.

La Roja sit top by a single point, after beating Denmark 1-0 in an edgy match in Murcia on Saturday, while Dragan Stojkovic’s Serbia kept their hopes alive with an impressive 2-0 home win over Switzerland.

The UEFA Nations League 2024 betting odds make the European Champions the favourites to add another crown to their haul and they will be among the front-runners for the 2026 World Cup in the Americas. And the SBOTOP odds say they will take some beating on Tuesday; but La Roja will need to up their game to avoid a nasty surprise from the Serbs, who held them to a 0-0 draw in September.       

 

Talking Points

Spain sweating on Yamal

De La Fuente’s squad already has some big players missing and Spain fans will be anxious to see how 17-year-old winger Lamine Yamal is fairing after he limped off towards the end of their win over Denmark. He played 93 of the 97 minutes but the star of Euro 2024 was on the end of a number of agricultural tackles from the Danes and Yamal didn’t look at all happy when he finally escaped the attention. With winger Nico Williams and defensive midfielder Rodri already out, Spain really don’t want to lose another star, while Barcelona fans and Blaugrana boss Hansi Flick may be even more worried. 

Spain dominated the game against the Danes, with a whopping 25 shots to three and six to one on target, but they had to wait until the 79^th minute to break the deadlock as Martin Zubemendi hammered a volley through the grasp of Kasper Schmeichel and into the net. Had the Danish stopper kept that effort out his team would have stayed top, but now La Roja are a point ahead and they can move on to ten points with a win over Serbia, with just two group games left to play.         

 

Mitrovic shines for the Serbs

Serbia’s meeting with Switzerland was a must win for Stojkovic’s men and they delivered with clinical efficiency against a star studded side. Led by Granit Xhaka, Switzerland fielded Manuel Ajanji, Breel Embolo and Remo Freuler in their starting 11 and they dominated possession, as well as winning the shot count by 11 to seven with both sides registering four shots on target. But after Nico Elvedi put through his own net to give Serbia a half time lead, the Serbs pulled away thanks to a strike from their prolific goal scorer, Aleksandar Mitrovic.            

Al Hilal striker Mitrovic was on target in spectacular style and he remains a real goal threat since his move to the Saudi Pro League. With 51 goals in 47 games for his latest club and still only 30 years of age he is a real handful for any defence. Mitrovic is Serbia’s top scorer of all time with 59 goals from 95 internationals and he’s the all-round striker, a powerful presence at 6ft 2in with impressive speed and a fierce shot. 

Now third in the group, Stojkovic’s men are just two points behind Denmark and three behind Spain so they are right back in contention. A win, or even a draw on Tuesday, will leave them with plenty to play for when the final two matches are played in November. Mitrovic will lead the line and, with no Rodri to protect them, the Spanish centre backs need to be on their game.

 

History

As well as being Kings of Europe La Roja are the reigning Nations League champions and they will be determined to get back to their best after an average display against the Danes. 

These two nations have only met twice before, a 2-0 home win for Spain in a 2012 friendly and then they played out that goalless draw in Serbia just last month. 

Serbia hadn’t won in five games before they beat the Swiss, while La Roja are unbeaten in 12 and in seven matches on home soil, so an away win on Tuesday would be one of the big UEFA Nations League 2024 results of the year. 

 

Betting Tip

Spain are at a price of 1.30 to win this tie with the Serbs at 7.62 and the draw is at 4.45. Serbia +1.50 is available at odds of 1.82 but I’m coming down on the side of Spain, who have conceded one goal so far in the competition and can be devastating when they click in attack.

For an alternative bet at longer odds, a 2-0 home win is the most likely score line at a price of 5.60.

   

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