Spain will start their life after Luis Enrique with their opening Euro 2024 qualification clash against Norway at La Rosaleda Stadium. We have asked Tyler Morris for his best bets and his analysis of what should be a very interesting game. Read below his two selections, including a long shot.
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It must feel bad when you can field arguably the best scorer in the world and yet you have failed to qualify for a major tournament in 23 years. Well, this is Norway’s situation; they are heading to Malaga, hoping to change that dreadful stat. They were immediately dealt a huge blow in their campaign, though, as Erling Haaland had to leave the camp due to a groin issue. The ‘Robot’ has scored 42 goals since moving to England, and that is even more impressive if you think that he has done so in just 37 appearances with the Citizens. For the Lions, he has scored 24 goals in 23 appearances, so surely this is very bad news for Norway, who would have needed him badly in this tricky trip to Spain.
For Spain, this will be the start of a new era as Luis de la Fuente is making his debut as head coach, replacing Luis Enrique. The latter decided to leave the team after his side was eliminated on penalties by Morocco in the World Cup. De La Fuente now has the responsibility to make La Roja the protagonist again on the biggest stages after disappointing performances since their last major tournament win in 2012. The main task will be to qualify for Euro 2024 in what seems on paper to be a rather weak group that includes the likes of Cyprus, Georgia, Norway, and Scotland.
Spain vs Norway Betting Prediction: Draw At Half Time
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With a fit Haaland I would have expected Norway to play a more positive game, potentially even scoring first in this game. After all, they have scored the first goal in all their last four away games, and Ståle Solbakken would have approached this in a different way. Without him, Norway are losing a lot in attack, and even if they can count on an in-form Martin Odegaard to cause problems upfront, realistically a draw would be considered a success back home.
So, in this scenario, the most important thing is to avoid a defeat and stay in the game. Spain have had issues scoring goals in the recent past, and they are playing their first match for the new manager, so they will want to avoid taking too many risks, so everything points to a ‘study’ phase that will be quite long, with the draw at halftime looking like the best value.
Spain vs Norway Betting Prediction: Iago Aspas First Goalscorer
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If we exclude Martin Odegaard and Erling Haaland, the Norwegian line lacks quality, which is the main reason why they have failed to qualify for major tournaments in recent years. With Haaland, they could have put pressure on the Spanish backline, but without him, you would expect eventually the hosts to get control of the game, also considering they are playing at home.
As the minutes pass, the pressure on the Norwegian backline will increase, and there is good value in backing Iago Aspas to score first in this match. The 35-year-old has had a great season with Celta Vigo, scoring 12 goals in 26 games, including three in their last two La Liga games. He could be the key to this, given his technical skills and the fact that he has scored 12 goals in 26 games.He will also be on penalty duty, increasing his chances to score first. Back him to deliver and help Spain get over Norway with a minimal margin of victory.
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