Spain (6/10) | Draw (29/10) | Colombia (38/10) (22:30)
Spain makes the trip to the London Stadium to meet Colombia in an international friendly match kicking off at 22:30. With four of the previous five meetings between these two nations ending a draw, can we expect fireworks, come Friday?
Spain
Spain flexed their muscles during the European Qualifiers, finishing top of their group and scoring twenty-five goals in the process. Group A saw La Roja paired alongside Scotland, Norway, Georgia, and Cyprus. In eight games, Luis de la Fuente’s men recorded seven wins and just a solitary loss.
In recent history, La Roja lifted the Nations League, following a 5 – 4 penalty shootout win over Italy. However, at the 2022 World Cup, Spain made it out of the group by the skin of their teeth. After narrowly edging Germany, they drew Morocco in the Round of 16. A goalless draw saw the former holders knocked out on penalties.
Looking ahead to this one, Luis de la Fuente will be looking for some strong showings from his side during the international break as they look toward an action-packed summer. There could be room for a few new faces in the midfield, following a couple of big names missing due to injury, including Barcelona duo Pedri and Gavi.
Colombia
Colombia secured automatic qualification for the Copa America due to all ten CONMEBOL teams being eligible for qualification. Prior to that, the off-pitch antics of Colombia saw them unable to qualify for the 2022 World Cup.
The Colombian National Team struggled from the beginning for 2022 World Cup qualification and that carried throughout the whole eighteen game CONMEBOL qualifiers. Multiple hirings at the coach position added instability to a squad that got used to playing in big stages.
During that eighteen-game streak, Colombia managed only five wins, eight draws and five losses which left them on 23 points, one point from the inter-confederation play-offs and three points from out-right qualification.
Fast forward to this one and Nestor Lorenzo has made a big call for his squad. The Argentine tactician has included James Rodriguez in his team for the upcoming international break. There are also the likes of Premier League talents Luis Diaz and Luis Sinisterra who could be impactful. The fifty-eight-year-old will be cognisant of the fact that Colombia have failed to beat Spain at each time of asking …
Verdict: Spain at 6/10
Both sides have a big tournament this summer and will be looking to build some good momentum with wins in this international break. Spain and Colombia have met just five times in their histories, with the first meeting coming back in 1979. There has only been one win in this fixture, that being the 1 – 0 win for Spain back in 2011 in an international friendly. With key figures like Manchester City’s Rodri, Atletico Madrid’s Alvaro Morata and Real Madrid’s Joselu, I think Spain will overcome Columbia.
Written by Desh Parthab