Portugal vs Spain

It all comes down to this all-Iberian showdown between Portugal and Spain to determine the winner of Group A2 of the Nations League at the Estádio Municipal de Braga.

Scoring precisely twice on either side of halftime catapulted Portugal to a mammoth 4-0 victory away to the Czech Republic last time out, firing them to the top of the table in Group A2. With two points separating them from second-placed Spain ahead of the kick-off, avoiding defeat will do the trick for the ‘Selecao.’ That’s not beyond the realm of possibility, as they’ve not lost any of their last six H2Hs against ‘La Furia Roja’ inside 90 minutes (W1, D5). On top of that, Portugal’s high-flying Nations League form has seen them pick up three victories in their last four outings in the competition (L1), all of which came via 2+ goals ‘to nil.’ Additionally, since a shocking 2-1 home defeat to Serbia in November 2021, Fernando Santos’ men have racked up four successive home wins, all of which yielded a 2+ goal margin.

On the other hand, Spain succumbed to a dreadful 2-1 home defeat to Switzerland in the previous Nations League round, ending their four-match unbeaten start to Group A2 (W2, D2). Nothing less than a victory will do for the Spaniards, who have won four of their five internationals on foreign soil (D1) since a 2-1 loss in Sweden in their first post-Euro 2020 away match. But Spain’s current position is reminiscent of the last Nations League campaign when ‘La Furia Roja’ thrashed Germany 6-0 on the final matchday to seal the progression. Replicating that feat looks far-fetched, though, as they have failed to get on the scoresheet in two of their three previous visits to Portugal (D2, L1).