Spain U21 vs. Poland U21 Betting Tips, Prediction & Odds
Round 3 of the 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group A ends with an interesting clash between massive favourites Spain and overachievers Poland.
Spain U21 vs. Poland U21
- UEFA European Under-21 Championship
- Stadio Renato Dall’Ara, Bologna, Italy
- Saturday 22 June
- 20:00 UK Time
Spain U21 vs. Poland U21 Game Preview
Poland surprised us all with two wins in the first two games and they even beat the hosts Italy along the way and now they need only a point to secure top place in Group A and advance to the semi-finals. Spain, on the other hand, are hoping for three points as a draw would not be enough to make it to the semis and this game will be the biggest test for this generation.
Spain U21 Team News and Latest Form
Spain fell to a 3-1 loss against Italy in their opening U21 European Championship game despite scoring the game’s opening goal. Head coach Luis de la Fuente made three changes in the net clash with Belgium and it paid off as the Spaniards secured a late, 2-1 win.
Midfielders Dani Olmo and Mikel Merino were particularly impressive in that victory and Dinamo Zagreb player even scored in the 6th minute to give Spain an early lead while new West Ham United midfielder Pablo Fornals came off the bench and scored a winner in the 89th minute, cancelling out Sebastiaan Bornauw’s equaliser in the process. It will be surprising if De la Fuente doesn’t include former Villarreal player in starting line-up against Poland.
Striker Borja Mayoral is under threat after two unimpressive displays and he could begin this clash on the bench while Rafa Mir could take his place in starting eleven. Spain suffered only two losses in the last three years and they found the back of the net in each of their previous 17 matches, so expect them to score at least one goal here as well.
Poland U21 Team News and Latest Form
After defeating Belgium in their opening match, Czeslaw Michniewicz’s men beat Italy with only 40% of ball possession and six shots at goal, four of which were on target. They opted to wait for their chance on the counter and sit back and that proved to be a winning strategy. Don’t be surprised if the Poles use the same tactics against Spain as they don’t have to rush and attack from the start, which is the case with the Spaniards.
Arsenal youngster Krystian Bielik moved from central defence into midfield and that was a great move by Michniewicz as Bielik scored the game’s only goal in the 40th minute. He was the fastest to react on a rebound following a free-kick and although Alex Meret was on that ball, the Italian keeper couldn’t keep it out.
Poland lost only two of their last 16 games and they didn’t suffer a single defeat during qualifications, which is a great achievement for Czeslaw Michniewicz. They failed to hit the net in both of those losses but scored in 14 of 16 games and Spain already allowed four goals at this tournament, so the Poles will definitely get some opportunities to score in this one.
Spain U21 vs. Poland U21 Head to Head
These rivals have met four times since 2007 and Spain were victorious in each of those clashes but the previous one was played nine years ago. A lot of things in world football changed since and now we have Poland in the situation to top the group ahead of big favourites Italy and Spain, which was unimaginable nine years ago.
Spain U21 vs. Poland U21 Betting Tip
The Poles will probably be looking to keep the clean sheet for as much as possible and they’re hoping the Spaniards will become more nervous as the game goes on. They showed us they can be dangerous on the counter and that is exactly how they plan to hurt Spain here. Set-pieces are the Poles’ big weapon and I am backing them to score but the Spaniards have a better team and they’re playing eye-catching football, so my pick for this game is Spain to win with both teams scoring at 7/4 with 22Bet. Backing Spain to win at 1/4 is certainly out of question.
