Spain - Scotland predictions and free betting tips [12/10/2023]

On Thursday 12th October, as part of the 7th round of the Euro 2024 qualifiers, Spain will take on the national team of Scotland. In March, 'La Roja' surprisingly fell to Scotland away with a scoreline of 2:0, thanks to two goals from Scott McTominay, meaning now the red-and-gold are 6 points behind their opponent and need nothing but a win.

Predicted Line-ups

Spain: Simon; Carvajal, Le Normand, Laporte, Balde; Merino, Rodri, Gavi; Torres, Morata, N. Williams.
Scotland: Gunn; Porteous, Hendry, Cooper; Hickey, Gilmour, McGregor, Robertson; McTominay, McGinn; Adams.

Stadium

The duel will take place in Seville at the Cartuja Stadium.

Spain

Spain, suffering humiliation in the 1/8 finals of the last World Cup, needed several official matches to pull themselves together. This period cost them dearly: after starting with a big win over Norway (3:0), the red-and-gold fell to Scotland (2:0) in the second round of the qualifying campaign, and are now forced to chase their upcoming opponents in the table. Despite two wins in September over Georgia (1:7 thanks to Alvaro Morata's hat-trick) and Cyprus (6:0), 'La Roja' lags behind the British team by 6 points. In June, under the guidance of Luis de la Fuente, they triumphed in the Nations League, beating Croatia on penalties, which was preceded by a victory over the Italians with a score of 2:1 in the semi-finals of the tournament. The national team, ranked 10th in the world by FIFA, won all 24 previous Euro qualifiers on their home soil, dating back to October 2003.

The squad announced by the coaching staff of Luis de la Fuente is very similar to that of last month. Goalkeeper Kepa (Real Madrid), defenders Laporte (Al-Nasr), Le Normand (Real Sociedad), Balde (Barcelona) and Carvajal (Real Madrid), midfielders Gavi (Barcelona), Rodri (Manchester City) and Fabian Ruiz (PSG) are all available. Up front, the best scorer of these qualifiers, Alvaro Morata (Atletico, 33 goals in 66 matches) and the experienced Joselu (Real Madrid, 4 goals in 6 matches) are expected to feature. Young Fran Garcia (Real Madrid) and Oihan Sancet (Athletic Bilbao) are ready to strengthen the game in the second half. Absences include injured Dani Olmo (Leipzig), Pedri (Barcelona), and Asensio, as well as Azpilicueta (Atletico) and young Pino (Villarreal).

Scotland

Scotland is unexpectedly leading this qualifying tournament. After missing the World Cup in Qatar last year, the blue-and-white had great results in the first five rounds of the current Euro campaign, beating Cyprus (3:0), Spain (2:0), Norway (1:2), Georgia (2:0) and again Cyprus (0:3) last month. However, in their last match, Steve Clarke's side lost in a friendly game to their arch-rivals - the England team (1:3). The visitors, ranked 31st in the world by FIFA, are undefeated in each of the nine previous matches, including eight victories, and avoiding defeat against Spain on Thursday will be enough to secure their place in next year's continental championship in Germany. What's more, Scotland needs to gain six points in the three final rounds of the qualifiers to guarantee themselves top spot in Group A.

Key players for the national team predictably made the squad for this gathering: captain Robertson (Liverpool), reliable McKenna (Nottingham Forest), Hendry (Al-Ittifaq), Cooper (Leeds), Hickey (Brentford) and Patterson (Everton), experienced midfielders McGinn (Aston Villa, 17 goals in 58 matches), McGregor (Celtic), Armstrong (Southampton) and McTominay (Manchester United) and young Gilmour (Brighton). In attack, Christie (Bournemouth, 41 matches, 5 goals), Dykes (QPR, 32 matches, 9 goals) and Adams (Southampton, 25 matches, 5 goals) are available. Losses include injured Tierney (Real Sociedad, 41 matches) and Hanley (Norwich, 48 matches). Initially called up midfielder Jack (Rangers, 17 matches) and forward Nisbet (Millwall) were also forced to withdraw from the upcoming matches due to injuries.

Head-to-Head Meetings

Guests suffered losses in both previous visits to Seville: a 4:1 defeat from Brazil in the World Cup 1982's group stage and a 1:0 fiasco against Spain in the qualifying campaign for the World Cup 1985. The match of the current campaign's first round ended in a 2:0 victory for the Brits.

Spain vs Scotland Match Forecast

Spain find themselves backed into a corner: the team must win at all costs if they are to secure first place in the group. Credit due to 'La Roja', which over the past six months have found good form and are churning out victories one after another. I have the feeling that the Scots have already punched above their weight in these qualifiers - I am backing the hosts with a handicap -1.5.

Total Score Forecast

In the last two meetings, the Spaniards scored a whopping 13 goals. In attack, the hosts have Morata, Joselu, Gavi and Torres available – with such a forward line, they are simply obliged to score at least twice on Thursday.

Corner Prediction

Spain's motivation lies in the group tournament situation and they will take the initiative from the first minutes, sieging their opponent's goals. My prediction – a victory for the red-and-gold in corner kicks with a handicap -1.5.

Yellow Card Forecast

The Scots preach traditional British football, involving a plethora of fouls. The white and blue team will definitely win the yellow cards with a handicap -1.5.

Score Prediction

I am betting on the exact score of 3:1 in favour of the Spanish national team.