Sports Mole previews Monday’s Nations League clash between Spain and Switzerland, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Spain will round off their Group 4 of League A campaign in the UEFA Nations League on Monday evening, with the reigning champions, who are through to the quarter-finals, welcoming Switzerland.
La Roja have already topped the section and will be present in the final eight, while Switzerland’s relegation to League B has been confirmed, with a disappointing campaign leaving them in fourth on just two points.
Match preview
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Spain were not at their best against Denmark on Friday night, but it was another professional performance from La Roja, as goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Ayoze Perez handed them a 2-1 success in Copenhagen.
The result saw Luis de la Fuente‘s side move onto 13 points from five matches in Group 4 of League A, six points ahead of second-placed Denmark with just one game left, but they will still want to finish on a positive note against Switzerland.
Spain have scored 10 times and conceded just twice in their five matches in the section, winning each of their last four after drawing their section opener away to Serbia at the start of September.
La Roja are the reigning Nations League champions, having beaten Croatia in the 2022-23 final, while they are also the European champions, famously overcoming England in the final of Euro 2024.
Spain have now not lost a competitive match since March 2023, and the strength of their squad was on full display against Denmark; more players will now be hoping for opportunities to make their mark on Monday evening, as nothing substantial is on line for either team.
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Switzerland have never really got going in the section, losing their first three matches against Denmark, Spain and Serbia, before drawing 2-2 with Denmark at home last month.
A-Team were back in action on Friday night, drawing 1-1 against Serbia, with Zeki Amdouni on the scoresheet for the home team in Zurich before Aleksa Terzic came up with a late equaliser.
Murat Yakin‘s side have been relegated to League B, and they are without a victory in all competitions since recording a 2-0 win over Italy in the last-16 stage of the recent European Championship.
Switzerland have only ever beaten Spain on two occasions, including a famous 1-0 victory at the 2010 World Cup, while they overcame La Roja in the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League campaign.
Spain were 4-1 winners when the pair locked horns in the reverse match in this section, though, and there is no getting away from the fact that Switzerland have been below-par during the 2024-25 Nations League.
Spain Nations League form:
Spain form (all competitions):
Switzerland Nations League form:
Switzerland form (all competitions):
Team News
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Spain have released Martin Zubimendi, Alex Baena and Oyarzabal from their squad for this match, although the latter would have missed out regardless through suspension.
Pablo Barrios has been handed a call-up, and the Atletico Madrid midfielder will be hoping to have the chance to make his debut.
Pau Cubarsi, Bryan Gil and Bryan Zaragoza were all left out of the squad against Denmark but are set to be available here, with head coach De la Fuente planning to make wholesale changes.
Alvaro Morata could be back at centre-forward, while Nico Williams is also expected to come back into the side.
Samu Omorodion has been in excellent form for Porto this season, scoring 12 times in 13 appearances, and the 20-year-old is also likely to feature at some stage of the contest.
As for Switzerland, head coach Yakin will make changes to the side that took to the field for the first whistle against Serbia, with Dereck Kutesa, Joel Monteiro and Andi Zeqiri potentially coming into the XI.
While there is nothing substantial on offer for either side on Monday, Switzerland will want to end a poor campaign on a positive note, so the likes of Granit Xhaka and Manuel Akanji should be in the side.
Breel Embolo is the leading goalscorer in the squad with 15, but the Monaco striker could be among those to drop to the bench here, as Yakin prepares to give some squad members the chance to make their mark.
Spain possible starting lineup:
Raya; Mingueza, Vivian, Laporte, Grimaldo; Merino, Ruiz; N Williams, Olmo, Pino; Morata
Switzerland possible starting lineup:
Kobel; Fernandes, Comert, Akanji, Rodriguez; Xhaka, Freuler; Monteiro, Amdouni, Kutesa; Zeqiri
We say: Spain 2-0 Switzerland
Spain will be far from full strength on Monday, but their back-up players are also of a high quality, and we are expecting De la Fuente’s side to have too much for an out-of-form Switzerland in this Nations League contest.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.