Spain vs Liechtenstein Predictions & Betting Tips, Match Previews

Spain finally succumbed to their ageing squad in the summer as they lost the European Championship as they looked to defend it successfully for a second time. It didn’t go to plan as they struggled to break down Czech Republic in their group opener, relying on a late goal to claim the three points. They were more impressive against a lacklustre Turkey as they won 3-0, but Croatia pipped them to the top spot in the group with a shock 2-1 win over them.

They still made it to the knockout stages, but their group showings were far from convincing, which made a first knockout round clash with the organised Italians a daunting prospect. They ended up losing 2-0, and deservedly so, to get knocked out of the European Championships for the first time since 2004.

Long serving Spain manager Vicente del Bosque was always planning to retire after the tournament as well, and with the likes of Andres Iniesta and Iker Casillas also ageing, this marked the end of an era.

New boss Julen Lopetegui stepped in after del Bosque, and his first squad naming included a few surprises as Cesc Fabregas, Iker Casillas, and Pedro were all left out. Diego Costa and Juan Mata have been recalled but Iniesta is out injured. This didn’t seem to matter though as a David Silva brace secured them a deserved win at Belgium in midweek.

In all honesty a home match against Liechtenstein is almost a formality. The visitors lost 5-0 to Denmark in a friendly on Wednesday to make it ten games without a victory. Eight of these have been defeats, and they have failed to score in eight of them as well, whilst conceding a total of 30 goals.

Away from home they have lost 20, drawn two, and won one of their last 23 outings and have scored just one goal in their last 12 trips away. Spain have won seven of their last eight home matches as well, scoring 20 goals in the process.

This is expected to be a demolition job, and it’s easy to see why. The new boss of Spain is looking to make his mark after the long and successful reign of del Bosque, and a few of the returning players will want to impress in order to remain in the squad. They made fairly light work of the talents of Belgium last time out, so I think this could be a hammering. Odds of 4/6 for a Spain winning margin of four or more look excellent value considering the disparity between the sides, and I’m also backing a 5-0 correct score prediction at 11/2.