Spain vs Georgia Bet Builder Tips: Crusaders to show fight in 6/1 shot

Spain and Georgia face off in the last 16 of Euro 2024 at the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne on Sunday (20:00, ITV1), with three-time winners La Roja looking to avoid being victims of an upset against the Crusaders, who have won the hearts of many with their performances in Germany so far.

Read on for my Spain vs Georgia bet builder tips as I look to serve up a successful 6/1 shot.

Euro 2024 Odds

Spain vs Georgia Odds

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Alvaro Morata anytime scorer (90 mins)

Alvaro Morata struck Spain's first goal of Euro 2024 when he opened the scoring in their 3-0 victory over Croatia on June 15, and the 31-year-old also led the line with aplomb in La Roja's 1-0 win against Italy before being restricted to a 20-minute substitute appearance against Albania with his country already qualified as Group B winners.

The Atletico Madrid forward will be restored to the starting XI on Sunday and will fancy his chances of netting at least once to boost his chances of finishing as the competition's top scorer, with Georgia's Georges Mikautadze currently leading the way on three goals.

Morata scored a hat-trick when the sides met for the first time in Euro 2024 qualifying as Spain ran out 7-1 winners in Tbilisi last September, though he was unable to add to his tally in November's reverse fixture in Valladolid when the hosts recorded a 3-1 victory.

Georgia have shown terrific spirit so far in Germany but did concede three times in their group opener with Turkey, while their clean sheet against Portugal was impressive but came against a much-changed side that had already qualified as group winners.

I struggle to see how Georgia keep out Spain after shipping 10 goals against them in qualifying, and Morata should see plenty of chances fall his way.

Georges Mikautadze 1+ shots (90 mins)

A shock contender for the Golden Boot, Mikautadze is out on his own on three goals heading into the last 16. This may well be Georgia's last game in the competition unless they can spring an almighty surprise against the Spaniards, so the 23-year-old may only have one match left to extend his lead at the top.

It won't be easy for his teammates to fashion chances for him on Sunday, certainly not to the level they did against Turkey when he had four shots and scored one of them. Mikautadze also failed to record an open-play shot against the Czech Republic or Portugal, with his goals against both coming from the penalty spot.

However, in a do-or-die game for Georgia, I'm backing him to have at least one attempt. Spain lost the shot count in their win against Croatia, who had 16 shots including two for their starting striker Ante Budimir, while Albania registered 10 shots against them last time out.

Spain also conceded a penalty against Croatia, which could be another route to goal for Mikautadze, and for this selection to land, he could also afford to miss his spot-kick like Bruno Petkovic.

Robin Le Normand 2+ fouls (90 mins)

Robin Le Normand played the entirety of Spain's first two group games and looks like a nailed-on starter for Sunday's contest, and his foul conceded numbers certainly pique interest.

The Real Sociedad defender fouled twice against Croatia and went one further against Italy, conceding three fouls and being carded. He also made one foul against Albania, despite only appearing for the second 45 minutes.

Despite Spain likely dominating proceedings on Sunday, Le Normand will likely have his work cut out facing a dangerous Georgian outfit containing the mercurial talents of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who has been fouled 10 times so far at Euro 2024 (three vs Turkey, three vs Czech Republic, four vs Portugal).

Le Normand has been playing on the right-hand side of central defence for Spain, meaning he is likely to be in close contact with Kvaratskhelia, who operates from the left and likes to cut inside. The Napoli winger's pace could be a problem for Spain, who are likely to play high up the pitch and could be susceptible to counter-attacks.

Dani Carvajal is a capable right-back but cannot be left to deal with Kvaratskhelia alone, so Le Normand will have to cover him at every opportunity, and we could see the 27-year-old make some cynical fouls to stop Georgia getting close to the Spain goal.

Georgia over 17.5 tackles (90 mins)

Georgia made a whopping 23 tackles against Turkey in their Euro 2024 opener before following that up with 19 and 21 against the Czech Republic and Portugal respectively.

Unsurprisingly, they average more tackles (21 per game) than any other side at the tournament, and I don't see that number going too far down on Sunday.

Croatia only made 14 tackles against Spain but Albania made 17, just shy of the 18 needed for the above selection to land between these sides, while Italy made a massive 32 in their defeat to La Roja.

Georgia registered 17 tackles in their 7-1 defeat to Spain last September before upping it to 20 in November.

For further reading on what constitutes a tackle and how markets like this are settled, read this bet builder StatsBomb definitions article on Betfred Insights.

Place an In-Play bet of £10 or more odds of 1/2+ on the Sunday 5pm KO at Euro 2024 (England vs Slovakia) and get £5 in Free Bets to use In-Play on the 8pm KO (Spain vs Georgia).

You can read all our latest Euro 2024 Betting Tips at our dedicated Betfred Insights content hub.