Spain
Sweden
Sweden
Three-times champions Spain kick off their campaign against tournament mainstays Sweden
Spain to win 2-1
A new-look Spain side take to the main stage as they start their campaign on home soil as one of the 11 host nations.
Spain, now under the management of former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique, made headlines before the tournament by not including any Real Madrid players in a fresh-faced approach with plenty of young talent.
The three-times champions are not expected to win the trophy this time around, but they will surely have plenty to say over the next few weeks and could still progress deep into the competition.
Sweden are old hands at major competitions, and appear now at their sixth consecutive Euros. They have only progressed from the group stage twice from their seven tournaments overall, reaching the Quarter Finals in 2004 and Semis 1992.
With Spain expected to top the group, Sweden will be vying with Poland and Slovakia for the second automatic spot to the Round of 16.
World Ranking: 6
Best Historical Finish at the Euros: Winners, 1964/2008/2012
Predicted Finish This Year: Quarter Finals
Reasons to be cheerful:
Top class manager who have been highly successful in club football
Won eight of their 10 qualifiers
Reasons to be fearful:
Far from ideal build-up with some players testing positive for Covid-19
Experienced players of the past have largely gone
A look at Spain’s line up these days tells you that this is a very different one to those which dominated the world a decade or so ago.
Most, if not all, of those legendary players have retired, with one of the survivors of that period, Sergio Busquets, missing the early stages of this tournament due to Covid-19.
There is still plenty of quality, however. You would be hard-pressed to find a more technically gifted squad at the competition, with the likes of Ferran Torres, Thiago, Koke and Rodri fine players on the ball.
Their recent history at major tournaments is patchy. They’ve only won one of their last five opening matches at Euros or World Cups, but they are still expected to top their group.
Star Man – Ferran Torres
The Manchester City forward has six goals in his 11 appearances for Spain.
World Ranking: 18
Best Historical Finish at the Euros: Semi Finals, 1992
Predicted Finish This Year: Round of 16
Reasons to be cheerful:
Strong squad with hard-working players
Reached World Cup Quarter Finals three years ago
Reasons to be fearful:
Similar to Spain, have been struck down by Covid-19
Could suffer in the Spanish heat
Sweden is not a country known for its hot weather, but their players will be forced to play in high temperatures when they play Spain in Seville in their opening group game.
They will also be without a couple of their star players, Dejan Kulusevski and Matthias Svanberg, who have both received positive Covid tests and must self-isolate for the early part of the tournament.
The Swedes do have a positive history at these championships, of course, appearing at their sixth consecutive tournament. They have gone out at the group stage in their last three, however, so they will be determined to go further here.
With Spain expected to top the group, can Sweden grab second place?
Star Man – Alexander Isak
Scored 17 goals for Spanish side Real Sociedad last season, so he’ll know some of these Spain players well.
Spain will dominate possession
Can Sweden make it difficult for them?
Could be a low-scoring match
With Spain having something of a poor record at recent tournaments, and having a new-look team that won’t have played much together, they may take a while to get going.
They have some very talented players, but who is going to step up to be the main goalscorer?
If Sweden can be tight at the back, it could be tough for them to break through.
Spain to win 2-1
