It’s now or never for the Albanians, who kept their hopes alive with an injury-time equalizer against the Croatians. Can they pull off a surprise against an already-qualified Spanish team to make it to the knockout stages? Read on for our Albania vs Spain predictions.
Albania vs Spain prediction
For the Albania vs Spain match prediction, we believe the final score will be 2-0 in favor of Spain based on our analysis.
The Albanians need a result here, but even if the Spanish make a few changes, which they likely will, it’s easy to see the tournament newcomers being overwhelmed by their much stronger opponents.
Our Albania vs Spain predictions are as follows:
Dani Olmo to Score @ +225 with bet365
Ylber Ramadani to be Booked @ +275 with bet365
Albania vs Spain betting odds
Albania vs Spain head-to-head statistics
Spain and Albania have faced each other eight times on the soccer field. Each of those eight games has gone in favor of the Spanish, including the most recent matchup, where Spain secured a 2-1 victory in 2022.
Albania vs Spain preview
This match will be played on June 24, 2024, at the Merkur Spiel-Arena in Düsseldorf. Kick-off is scheduled for 3:00 PM ET.
Spain started the tournament strong in Germany, displaying impressive offensive play against a disorganized Croatian team in their opener, and continued their upward trajectory against Italy on matchday two.
I have to admit, I thought the Italians might be able to hold their ground and challenge Spain, but that was far from the case.
Despite winning by just a single goal, La Roja dominated Gli Azzurri from start to finish, forcing them back for much of the game and dazzling both their opponents and the crowd with some fine attacking play.
We may only be two games in, but this Spanish team looks like serious contenders. Will anyone want to face them based on what we’ve seen so far? Absolutely not.
As for Albania, they weren’t quite up to speed on matchday one, despite scoring the fastest ever goal in European Championship history.
They were in front early again on matchday two, taking the lead against Croatia in the 11th minute through Qazim Laci of Sparta Prague, who neatly headed home from close range.
They fought hard to preserve their lead and lasted much longer than they did against Italy, but Croatian pressure eventually took its toll, as the Albanians conceded not one, but two goals in two second-half minutes.
When the second goal went in, an own goal from midfielder Klaus Gjasula, they looked down and out, and it’s probably fair to say that at that point, most people expected them to head into this game with zero points. I certainly did.
However, the men in black had other ideas, pushing for an equalizer that eventually came from Gjasula, who made amends for his own goal in the best possible way by scoring from inside the box deep into stoppage time.
Thanks to that late goal, Albanian qualification is still possible, but can they really beat a Spanish side that has looked the strongest in the tournament so far? You never know.
Albania vs Spain betting picks
Two betting angles appeal ahead of this fixture, both of which are player-focused.
Dani Olmo to Score
The Spaniards are through, and with this not exactly the toughest fixture, head coach Luis de la Fuente Castillo may make some changes here.
One player likely to come in is Dani Olmo, who has yet to start at Euro 2024, but has been heavily involved for Spain in recent years.
The RB Leipzig man had a season interrupted by injury, but he still averaged a goal every four games, while he has three goals in his last four appearances for Spain, not to mention an average of 0.35 goals per national team game since 2022.
With the Albanians likely to sit deep, this is the sort of game where a player like Olmo, who looks to get on the ball and shoot from range and around the edge of the box, can thrive.
Ultimately, this looks like a great opportunity for the man wearing the number 10 shirt for La Roja to do some damage and show his manager that he remains a player worth relying on as Spain heads into the knockout rounds.
Ylber Ramadani to be Booked
For the Albanians, I really like the look of Ylber Ramadani to get booked. The central midfielder is a key part of Sylvinho’s team and is no stranger to picking up a card.
The tenacious and often overzealous player escaped a caution against Croatia, but he was booked against Italy, so don’t be surprised to see him attract plenty of attention from the referee in a game like this.
After all, this is a player who picked up 13 yellow cards for Lecce in Serie A last season, collecting a booking every 2.38 games. Such a stat makes odds of +275 look quite attractive if you ask me.
Recap - Albania vs Spain betting picks
In summary, here are two recommended bets ahead of Albania vs Spain:
Dani Olmo to Score @ +225 with bet365
Ylber Ramadani to be Booked @ +275 with bet365
