Spain - Portugal, Picks and Tips
Spain is participating in the 2022/2023 Nations League as a finalist. The Iberians made a very good final four last autumn, coming close to a historic success. Now, Luis Enrique's national team is ready for a rematch, and the first "hop" on the road to the trophy will be the Spain-Portugal clash on Thursday night. "La Furia Roja" had their fair share of thrills in the Qatar World Cup preliminaries, securing first place in the final rounds in November. The deciding match was against Sweden in November, which they won 1-0. It was Alvaro Morata who brought happiness to the Iberian fans. In 2022, Spain played two friendlies in March. Enrique's national team defeated Albania 2-1 and Iceland by a resounding 5-0. Among the Spanish standouts were Morata and Sarabia in the two games. Returning to the Nations League, Spain participated in the Final Four played in Milan and Turin last autumn. There, "La Furia Roja" got past Italy in the semi-finals, considered the main favourites before that duel. In the end, the Iberians qualified for the final round of the competition after a 2-1 win. Ferran Torres scored a brace, while Lorenzo Pellegrini reduced the deficit for the Italians. Enrique's national team then went on to the grand final against France. Oyarzabal opened the scoring for 'La Furia Roja' in the 64th minute, but Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe turned the scoreline in favour of the 'Welsh cocks' and France won the match 2-1. Spain are aiming to qualify for the Final Four in 2023 and win the competition.
Portugal was the first Nations League winner in history. It happened in 2019 when the Lusitanians got past the Netherlands in the last round. The Fernando Santos-coached national team didn't make it to last year's Final Four, but this year they aim to return to the upper stages of the competition. The Spain-Portugal duel is the first real test for the Portuguese.
Cristiano Ronaldo's national team had a lot of trouble qualifying for the World Cup in Qatar. The Lusitanians needed two play-off matches to avoid a historic embarrassment.
Portugal played in March against Turkey and Northern Macedonia. The Lusitanians defeated the "crescent" national team 3-1 in the first duel this spring. Otavio, Diogo Jota and Nunes scored the goals for the Portuguese, while Yilmaz scored for Turkey.
The decisive match for qualification to the World Cup in Qatar was against Northern Macedonia, the team that had passed Italy a few days earlier. The Portuguese were untroubled and won 2-0 in the end. Bruno Fernandes scored both goals for Santos' national team.
In last year's Nations League, Portugal was in a group with France, Croatia and Sweden. The Lusitanians finished the group in second place with 13 points, three behind France.
Our recommendation tip for Spain - Portugal : BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE @ 1.95