The first two quarter finals of the Euro 2024 tournament take place on Friday on what looks a tasty day of football and they get underway with the host nation Germany going up against a good looking Spain side in Stuttgart.
There is a case to be made that these have been the two best teams at the competition so far so it is a bit of a shame that they are meeting so early in the piece but we should be in for a cracking contest despite that.
Where to watch
The match will be shown live and in full on the ITV1 channel in the UK with the build-up to the game beginning at 4pm ahead of the 5pm kick off.
Spain
The Spanish have been a breath of fresh air in this tournament with their exciting attacking unit dazzling everyone in their wake so far. If you want to pick holes in them going forward it is that they could be a whole lot more ruthless in chance conversion than they have been, but there is every chance that could come. It will probably need to when you consider their opponent here and in the semi-final should they come through this match.
There is definitely a concern defensively though. Georgia got at the Spanish defence a lot more than they would have been expected to and that would be a real issue because with no disrespect to Georgia, this Germany attack offers a lot more than that one did. If you go back earlier in the tournament a limited Croatia side and even Albania had their joy going up against this defence so at some point they need to improve in that area.
Germany
When you look at the results of Germany in this tournament there is no doubting that they have been one of the best in the event but there is definitely a question mark over just what they have beaten. The teams they have overcome have been Scotland, Hungary and Denmark, two of whom didn’t come out of the group and the other who did so with three draws so didn’t win a game in the campaign. Based on that, you suspect the Germans will need to step it up a little.
Germany have looked good going forward, although there could be the same questions about them as there are about Spain in terms of converting more of the chances that they create. Their defensive record in the tournament is decent enough but the eye test paints a bit of a different story. They have a defence that looks gettable, although it has to be said that they are backed up by one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
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Team News
Spain are expected to stick with the XI which got the job done comfortably against Georgia last time out. Nacho and Ayoze Perez were not available for that match but having recovered from muscle issues they are ready to be called upon for this one.
Germany will welcome Jonathan Tah back from his one game suspension and he is expected to go back alongside Antonio Rudiger at the heart of the German defence with Nico Schlotterbeck likely to go back to the bench.
Betting
This should be a cracking contest and one which both teams might well enjoy. Spain will probably have most of the ball and look to attack but Germany will have seen how Georgia countered on the Spanish in the previous round and will want a bit of that themselves. I wouldn’t want to pick a winner here although if I had to I would probably just about side with the more experienced German side but there isn’t enough in it for me to pop in with a wager on them.
The bet I do like is for there to be more than 2.5 goals. There is a case to be made for quarter finals being tight affairs but I don’t think either of these teams will want to rely on their defence. Julian Nagelsmann coaches to take the game to the opposition and I don’t think this Spanish side will need to be asked twice to go on the attack. I expect chances by the bucket load here and while we might not have the most clinical finishers known to man on show, I can’t ignore odds against on over 2.5 goals in this one.
Tips
Back Over 2.5 goals for a 3/10 stake at 2.10 with Unibet
