Spain
Spain has dominated its head-to-head matchup with Croatia for the last half decade. The Spaniards knocked Croatia out of the last Euros tournament in the round of 16 with a 5-3 victory in a high-scoring affair. Last year's Nations League final was much closer as Spain needed penalty kicks to claim the title. It's now been nearly six years since Croatia defeated La Roja with their last victory in this series coming in November 2018.
Spain also happens to be clicking on all cylinders heading into this year's Euros. Luis de la Fuente's side has just one loss in its last 12 matches, a 1-0 defeat to Colombia in March and Colombia may be the only team in the world on a hotter streak than Spain. In its last two friendly matches before heading to Germany, Spain handled its friendly matches against cupcake competition, easily handling Andorra and Northern Irelands by a combined score of 10-1.
Team news: De la Fuente has been careful not to reveal who will be starting against Croatia, but we can surmise a few of the players expected to make up the starting XI. We know Isco won't be participating in Spain's journey towards the finals after the Real Betis winger was announced out for at least six weeks by his club. Other than his injury, however, Spain will have all of its weapons available. Many eyes will be on Lamine Yamal, the 16-year old who will make history when he sets foot on the pitch as the youngest player to ever play in a European Championship.
Predicted Lineup: Simon; Carvajal, Le Normand, Nacho, Grimaldo; Ruiz, Rodri, Pedri; Yamal, Morata, Williams.
Croatia
Croatia has a tough road ahead of it in order to make it past the group stage. However, with Luka Modric still playing at a world-class level, anything is possible, as Croatia has shown time and again. The Real Madrid star accumulated 46 assists over his last nine seasons for the club. He even put away the game-winning score against Portugal in the team's final friendly match before the tournament. With so much recent success in the World Cup, don't expect the Croats to be rattled by a tough draw in the group stage.
Spain's defense has been the weak point of the team, a fact not lost on Modric and his teammates. In March, the Spaniards allowed three goals to Brazil in a draw after leading 2-0. Even against Northern Ireland in the Spaniard's last friendly match before the Euros La Roja allowed a weak, dribbler of a goal.
Still, finishing in the top three of the European Championship has been an elusive goal for Zlatko Dalic's national side. This will likely be Modric's last chance at any type of hardware so expect the veteran and former Ballon d'Or winner to give it all he's got.
Team news: Croatia enters this match on a six-game winning streak and with relatively perfect health. The only blemish on its injury report is the presence of Tottenham defensive winger Ivan Perisic, who suffered a serious knee injury last September. Expect Perisic to come off the bench for the majority of his appearances this tournament.
Predicted Lineup: Livakovic; Stanisic, Sutalo, Pongracic, Gvardiol; Brozovic, Kovacic, Modric; Majer, Budimir, Kramaric
