Euro 2020: La Furia Roja Begin Their European Conquest

Euro 2020: La Furia Roja Begin Their European Conquest

Spain vs Norway

Last year was a hectic time for plenty of European nations. One country experienced the glory of lifting the World Cup trophy again; three made impressive tournament runs in Russia; the Sbornay‘s Igor Akinfeev showed us what the Foot of God looks like.

However, there were countries like Spain that disappointed a lot of people in the competition. La Furia Roja were particularly heartbreaking as they had the potential to redeem their embarrassing run in 2014.

Fortunately, Euro 2020 gives them an opportunity to correct their grievances and give the proud Spaniards something to be proud of once more. They have a strong team that is led by a fantastic manager and are situated in a group that can help them make it past the qualifiers.

However, they start their campaign in a rather interesting qualifying group against Norway, one of the tougher opponents they will face in the group. They need to start the qualifiers on a good note by winning this game.

Talking Points

Feel La Roja‘s fury!

People are more than shocked with the fate Spain endured in the 2018 World Cup.

They were one of the bigger favourites to win the entire thing, and La Roja were looking sharp ahead of the competition. However, Real Madrid ripped the team apart by pulling Julen Lopetegui from the team to have an abysmal stay at the Santiago Bernabeu.

They managed to get out of the group stage, but an unbelievable performance from Igor Akinfeev saw the Spaniards leave the biggest dance in world football early. The loss also stung in the subsequent international retirements of Gerard Pique and Andres Iniesta.

The team managed to bounce back during the debut season of the UEFA Nations League. The still-bitter Spaniards gave Croatia, the tournament’s runners-up a major hiding in their first game, and they also played some spirited football against England. Unfortunately, their narrow defeat to the Vatreni in the rematch meant that they would not play in the Nations League semi-finals.

With no big contests to think about in the summer, Luis Enrique’s Spain can fully focus on making Euro 2020 news by topping their qualifying group. And they definitely have the manpower to do so.

The Spaniards have fantastic goalkeepers in David de Gea and Kepa Arrizabalaga. Sergio Ramos and Dani Carvajal are the core of the Spanish defence; Dani Ceballos and Saul Ñiguez are superb midfield options; Isco and Paco Alcacer are more than capable of scoring goals.

The stage is set for Spain to succeed. All they need to do is show up and do the job.

Victory is Norway’s only way

Norway have never been a competitive side in world football. While they have managed to participate in three World Cups, all of those happened in the 20th century.

The last time they played in the World Cup was in 1998. Meanwhile, they have only qualified for the UEFA European Championship once, in 2000. In the eyes of the SBOBET punter, Norway are nothing more than participants to the dance.

However, the number of Norwegian players who are playing abroad have increased in recent years, and the team looks more effective than ever. The country has improved as a footballing nation that even Spanish left-back Jordi Alba warned of the potential threat Norway have.

They also showcased their mettle in the Nations League. They managed to edge out Bulgaria in the promotion race and coolly dismissed Cyprus to gain promotion to League B.

They also have the players to make things happen. Ole Selnaes, Omar Elabdellaoui, Markus Henriksen, and Sigurd Rosted should be key players in the team’s qualifying run.

History

The two nations have played each other five times on the international stage, with Spain understandably winning three of those games. Their latest match was in the qualifiers for Euros 2004, and the one-sided Spanish victory saw Raul, Vicente, and Joseba Etxeberria overwhelm Norway in front of their fans in Oslo.

However, one blemish in Spain’s head-to-head record is their group stage match in the 2000 Euros. In front of 41,000 people at Stadion Feijenoord, Steffen Iversen notched a loss in Spain’s otherwise perfect qualifying run.

Betting Tip

Under 3.00 Goals @ 2.03

I fully expect Spain to win this match. They have the better squad all in all, and their fantastic outings against Croatia and England in the Nations League is a good manifestation of La Roja‘s quality. Even Euro 2020 odds on the qualifying stage give Spain a big handicap.

However, punters better beware Norway. They are still not at Spain’s level, but they could well pull a shocker on a good day. They should have quite a defence to at least limit Spain to two goals, and the result could very well end in a respectable 1-0 loss.

Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.

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