Croatia vs Spain - Nations League final: TV channel, team news, lineups & prediction
By Sean Walsh
Croatia and Spain will battle it out in the final of the Nations League this weekend.
Both sides needed late goals in order to advance from the last four, with Croatia ousting host nation Netherlands in extra-time and Spain relying on an 88th-minute winner from Joselu to sneak past Italy.
La Roja were runners-up in 2021 and neither side has tasted glory in this competition since the first edition back in 2019.
Here's 90min's preview of the final.
Where are Croatia vs Spain playing?
- Location: Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Stadium: De Kuip
- Date: Sunday 18 June
- Kick-off Time: 19:45 BST / 14:45 ET / 11:45 PT
- Referee: Felix Zwayer (GER)
- VAR: Marco Fritz (GER)
Croatia vs Spain H2H Results (Last Five Games)
- Croatia: 2 wins
- Spain: 3 wins
- Draws: 0
Current Form (Last Five Games)
- Croatia: LWDWW
- Spain: LDWLW
How to watch Croatia vs Spain on TV and live stream
Country | TV Channel/Live Stream |
|---|---|
United Kingdom | Channel 4 / Viaplay Sports UK |
United States | Fubo Sports Network / ViX |
Canada | DAZN |
Croatia team news
Despite playing 120 minutes on Wednesday evening, Zlatko Dalic is unlikely to make any sweeping changes to his starting lineup.
In fact, he's been tipped to stand by his starters and play the same XI that beat the Netherlands.
Croatia predicted lineup vs Spain
Croatia predicted lineup (4-3-3): Livakovic; Juranovic, Sutalo, Vida, Perisic; Brozovic, Modric, Kovacic; Pasalic, Kramaric, Ivanusec
Spain team news
Spain at least only had to play 90 minutes against Italy on Thursday and shouldn't be quite as tired as their opponents on Sunday despite having one day's fewer rest.
Luis de la Fuente is, however, expected to make a few changes to his starting lineup, with Real Madrid duo Dani Carvajal and Marco Asensio expected to come in for the impressive Jesus Navas and Leeds United's Rodrigo.
Spain predicted lineup vs Croatia
Spain predicted lineup (4-3-3): Simon; Carvajal, Le Normand, Laporte, Alba; Rodri, Ruiz; Asensio, Gavi, Pino; Morata
Croatia vs Spain prediction
A victory for Spain would go against a lot of eye-opening logic, not least the immediate uncertainty of De la Fuente, who's only been in the job for around half a year.
La Roja's roster is nowhere near as strong as it has been in even the recent past, while Croatia's veterans are peaking again and could sign off from this generation with silverware.
Luka Modric was majestic in Wednesday's win and you can expect him to have a big say in the final, too.