Prediction: Croatia vs Spain

Croatia and Spain renew their rivalry on Tuesday evening when they meet at Stadion Poljud in UEFA Nations League Group A3.

The visitors arrive in dominant form after extending their remarkable unbeaten run with another convincing victory, while Croatia are still reeling from one of the darkest nights in their football history following a humiliating defeat to England.

Few could have predicted the scale of Croatia’s collapse against England on Saturday.

What was expected to be another closely contested meeting between two familiar rivals instead turned into a nightmare for Slaven Bilic’s side, who were dismantled 7-0. Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka both struck twice, while Morgan Rogers, Jude Bellingham and Anthony Gordon also found the net in a result that rewrote all the wrong records for the Vatreni.

The defeat was Croatia’s heaviest ever loss and the first time they had conceded seven goals in a senior international. It also left them having shipped 11 goals across their last two Nations League fixtures, highlighting the defensive issues that have emerged since the start of the campaign.

Those setbacks have left Croatia third in the group standings, trailing both Spain and England while sitting only three points above bottom-placed Czechia.

Team News

Bilic now faces the difficult task of restoring confidence before another daunting assignment against the world champions. The good news is that his side emerged from the England defeat without any new injury concerns.

Several players remain at risk of suspension, including Luka Vuskovic, Marco Pasalic, Josip Misic, Petar Sucic and Martin Pongracic. However, the coach may freshen up his lineup after Saturday’s display, potentially recalling players who missed out against England.

Veteran captain Luka Modric is still expected to start despite being withdrawn before the hour mark in the previous match, with the midfielder set to make his 206th international appearance.

Spain continue to justify their status as world champions and appear to be getting stronger with every outing.

Luis de la Fuente’s side followed their 4-1 victory over Croatia in September with another commanding display against Czechia, recording a 4-1 success to maintain their flawless start to the Nations League campaign.

Lamine Yamal opened the scoring early before Rodri and Mikel Merino added further goals, helping La Roja secure a third win from three matches and strengthen their grip on top spot in the group.

The victory extended Spain’s astonishing unbeaten run to 41 matches in all competitions and marked their 10th consecutive win. They have also gone 16 Nations League matches without defeat in regulation time, further underlining their dominance on the international stage.

History also favours the visitors. Spain have won each of their last four meetings with Croatia and have scored at least twice in five of their previous six clashes with Tuesday’s opponents.

Team News

De la Fuente has the luxury of rotating without significantly weakening the team. Alex Baena and Lamine Yamal were both substituted at half-time against Czechia as a precaution rather than through injury, while Pau Cubarsi was simply rested.

Although Ferran Torres, Nico Williams and Alex Grimaldo remain unavailable following earlier withdrawals, Spain’s squad depth allows the manager to make changes without disrupting the team’s rhythm.

Key Factors to Consider

• Croatia suffered the heaviest defeat in their history when they lost 7-0 to England.
• The hosts have conceded 11 goals in their last two Nations League matches.
• Spain have won all three of their Group A3 fixtures.
• La Roja are unbeaten in 41 matches across all competitions.
• Spain have won their last four meetings with Croatia.
• The world champions have scored 10 goals in three Nations League matches.

Conclusion

Croatia should produce a much stronger response after their humiliation against England, and playing in Split will provide an opportunity to restore some pride.

However, facing Spain immediately after such a damaging defeat is far from ideal. The world champions are operating at an exceptionally high level, possess extraordinary depth throughout the squad and have repeatedly demonstrated their superiority in recent meetings between the two nations.

Croatia are unlikely to suffer another collapse of the same magnitude, but Spain should still have far too much quality and are backed to continue their winning run with another convincing performance.

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