Yahoo Sports Spain vs Germany: Preview, predictions and lineups
It's crunch time at Euro 2024 and the quarter-finals begin in style on Friday evening when the red-hot Spain face hosts Germany in Stuttgart.
These two nations have arguably been the most impressive teams at the tournament this summer and both made light work of their respective last-16 ties to advance into the last eight.
After topping a stacked Group B without conceding, Spain overcame a first-half scare after falling behind to beat Georgia 4-1, racking up a whopping 35 shots while eventually taming the Georgians' stellar threat on the counter.
Germany, meanwhile, certainly got the rub of the green against the Danes but their performance on Saturday night was typically efficient in rather treacherous conditions. Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala were on the scoresheet in a 2-0 victory.
Many would have been content with this tie being the final on 14 July but a lopsided draw means the pair must face off at a rather premature stage. The winner of Friday's clash will face either Portugal or France in the semi-finals.
Here's 90min's preview of the mammoth Euro 2024 quarter-final tie between Spain and Germany.
What time does Spain vs Germany kick-off?
Spain vs Germany H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
How to watch Spain vs Germany on TV and live stream
Spain team news
Spain once again impressed in the round of 16 with Luis de la Fuente's preferred XI returning after the manager made wholesale changes for their final group victory over Albania.
There are unlikely to be alterations to the starting lineup for Friday's quarter-final, although Dani Olmo is pushing to make the team having scored off the bench last time out.
Rodri has already served a one-game suspension, while Robin Le Normand, Alvaro Morata and Dani Vivian are all walking the yellow card tightrope.
Spain predicted lineup vs Germany
Spain predicted lineup vs Germany (4-3-3): Simon; Carvajal, Laporte, Le Normand, Cucurella; Rodri, Pedri, Fabian; Yamal, Morata, Williams.
Germany team news
Julian Nagelsmann could welcome Jonathan Tah back into his starting XI on Friday, but it wouldn't be a surprise if the German boss sticks with Nico Schlotterbeck after his impressive display in the round of 16. Tah was suspended for Germany's victory over Denmark.
Antonio Rudiger overcame a hamstring injury to start on Saturday and the Real Madrid defender starred in his country's 2-0 triumph.
There could be another reshuffle in attack with Florian Wirtz coming back in for Leroy Sane.
Germany predicted lineup vs Spain (4-2-3-1): Neuer; Kimmich, Rudiger, Schlotterbeck, Mittelstadt; Andrich, Kroos; Wirtz, Gundogan, Musiala; Havertz.
These two superbly coached and excellent teams are hard to separate. It'll come down to the finest of margins, with both sides likely to believe they can get at the other in transition.
Spain and Germany have both shown vulnerability when defending the counter-attack. Georgia had success against the Spaniards in their last-16 defeat before tiring in the second half, while Switzerland and Hungary both had joy against the hosts.
Given the proficiency of the two teams when attacking space, the two managers may opt for more conservative plans on Friday in a bid to mitigate each other's threat.
Predicting the victor is tough given the pair operate like elite club sides and the quality of the tie should be extremely high. It could go either way, but the home support combined with their superior experience could get Nagelsmann's side over the line.
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