Spain as well as the Sweden are favourites to progress from this group, and this game, despite being their first match, is an ideal opportunity to build momentum, as well as confidence.
Euro 2020: Group E
Monday 14 June
Estadio Olimpico de Sevilla
21:00
To Win
Spain 5/10
Draw 31/10
Sweden 58/10
Spain
Spain are currently ranked 6th in the world, and they are part of League A, in the UEFA Nations League where they topped Group A4 and thus gained entry to the semi-finals of the competition.
Luis Enrique’s men scored the most number of goals and also conceded the least. Most notably, their group wasn’t an easy one as it had the likes of Germany whom they thrashed 6-0.
Being one of the hosts countries, the Spanish national side is expected to do well, despite snubbing Real Madrid players, including club captain Sergio Ramos. Manchester City star defender Aymeric Laporte was called to take his place. Laporte made his debut last Friday against the defending champions Portugal where he helped his side keep a clean sheet against Cristiano Ronaldo and co.
Sweden
In the 2018 World Cup, Sweden proved they are one of the toughest teams in the world where they lost on penalties to England in the quarter-finals.
Sweden are ranked 18th in the world and are on a superb run at the moment. The team is scoring goals at a consistent rate and also defending very well. In the Euro qualifiers, they scored the most and conceded the least.
Sweden have lost just twice in the last two years and the defeats came against world champions France and European champions Portugal.
Prediction: Sweden (58/10)
The betting suggests that this will be an easy win for Spain, but I disagree with the odds. I think Sweden have a very good chance here and they can cause an upset. At 58/10, I think backing an upset is well worth the risk despite Spain playing at home.
Written by Banele Pikwa