Spain vs Switzerland Prediction: Two picks for showdown in Tenerife

Monday sees more action from the Uefa Nations League, as Spain take on Switzerland (19:45, live on YouTube).

Ahead of kick-off, our Spanish football expert Mark Sochon previews this one and picks out his two Best Bets as he takes us through his Spain vs Switzerland predictions.

Football Odds

Tenerife’s Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López is the setting for Spain’s final group game in the 2024/25 UEFA Nations League, with Switzerland the visitors.

This competition has been described in some quarters as serving up little more than glorified friendlies, but this match really will feel like one, with nothing at stake following Friday’s results.

Spain are guaranteed to top Group 4, meaning they’ve secured seeding in Friday’s quarter-final draw. Switzerland meanwhile are guaranteed to finish bottom and will be playing in League B the next time the competition takes place.

As a result, both teams will jet off to the Canary Islands with perhaps a bit of experimentation in mind, but Spain will certainly do so in good spirits after an excellent win in Copenhagen.

They recorded a fourth straight Nations League victory with a 2-1 triumph over Denmark. Largely due to injuries, Luis de la Fuente started that game with only three members of the eleven that kicked off the Euro 2024 final against England in the summer. However, it was another game where La Roja showcased their impressive depth, with a number of fringe players shining.

Without Lamine Yamal and with Álvaro Morata and Nico Williams only on the bench, the Spain boss handed starts to Mikel Oyarzabal and Villarreal duo Álex Baena and Ayoze Pérez.

It proved another smart decision from De la Fuente, with Spain looking fluid in attack throughout a first hour that they largely dominated, with an intricate team move setting up Oyarzabal for the opener, before in-form Ayoze grabbed his second international goal to all but kill the game off.

A late mix-up between Fabián Ruiz and David Raya handed the Danes a goal back and the visitors did have to survive some late pressure from the hosts, but hung on for their 13th victory in 14 internationals.

They’ll be hoping to round off a fantastic calendar year on Monday against a Switzerland side that has struggled in this group and is currently going through something of a transitional period.

Following Euro 2024 when they again impressed, only exiting the tournament as a result of a quarter-final penalty shootout defeat to England, a number of key players have retired from international football. That includes Yann Sommer, their long serving number one, as well as defender Fabian Schär and midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri.

Murat Yakin has been left needing to reshape what was one of the most settled sides in international football as a result, and it has certainly been a difficult Nations League campaign for the Swiss.

They started out with three defeats on the bounce, including a 4-1 loss against Spain in Geneva. The scoreline didn’t quite tell the whole story of a game that saw the Iberians reduced to 10 men in only the 20th minute. Switzerland were already 2-0 down by that point and despite largely dominating the play after that, they couldn’t make their numerical superiority count.

Their last two matches have represented a slight improvement, with a 2-2 draw against Denmark, followed by a 1-1 draw against Serbia on Friday. They were 1-0 up against the Serbs in Zurich thanks to a strike from Zeki Amdouni, but Aleksa Terzić’s 88th minute leveller condemned the Swiss to relegation.

Team News

Wholesale changes are expected from Spain for this match, although that won’t necessarily weaken the team too much, with the likes of Pedri, Nico Williams, Fabián Ruiz, Alejandro Grimaldo and Álvaro Morata expected to rotate in.

Martín Zubimendi and Álex Baena have both pulled out of the squad with minor niggles following the win in Denmark. Meanwhile, Mikel Oyarzabal is unavailable here as a result of a suspension.

Switzerland striker Breel Embolo is also banned for this game after picking up a booking against Serbia. Aside from the recent retirements, Switzerland are also currently hampered by injuries to key defender Manuel Akanji and midfielder Denis Zakaria.

Murat Yakin will most likely make a few changes too and hand some of his less experienced players opportunities in this game.

Spain vs Switzerland Odds

*Please click on the link above to be taken to the main Spain vs Switzerland page on betfred.com (or app) for all the live betting prices on this match

Spain head into this as the 4/9 favourites, with the Draw on offer at 7/2, while you can back a surprise Swiss victory at 13/2.

If you’re expecting plenty of action in the final third, Over 2.5 goals is priced at 8/11, while Over 3.5 goals is available at 2/1. Both teams to score can be backed at 10/11, a winning bet in eight of Switzerland’s last 11 fixtures.

You can double down on the hosts, by backing Spain -1.00 Handicap at 6/5, while Over 2.5 home goals is priced at 7/4. You can also back La Roja to win both halves at 23/10. Meanwhile, Switzerland are available at 5/2 to win either half.

With rotation in virtually every position expected, some of the players who didn’t start in Denmark, may be the best options in the goalscorer markets from a Spanish perspective. You can back Morata to score anytime at 11/8. Nico Williams is priced at 13/5 to score anytime while Fabián Ruiz, who scored twice in the reverse fixture against the Swiss, is priced at 18/5 to get on the scoresheet.

Switzerland’s Zeki Amdouni is on offer at 9/2 to grab his second goal of this international break after his strike against Serbia.

Spain & Over 2.5 goals @ 23/20

Switzerland have emerged as a really competitive international side in recent years thanks to their organisation and strong defensive capabilities. However, with Sommer and Schär now retired, and with Akanji unavailable, this is nothing remotely close to the solid Swiss defensive unit that we saw impress at Euro 2024.

Despite injury problems of their own, Spain have a ridiculous amount of depth which means they could make 11 changes here and still field a really strong team that’s likely to be too good for the Swiss.

While there’s not much at stake, De la Fuente’s side will be keen to sign off following a golden 2024 on the right note and I’m backing Spain and Over 2.5 goals at 23/20.

Bet Builder - Spain over 1.5 goals & Spain over 4.5 corners @ 1/1

We’re likely to see an attack-minded lineup here from the Spain boss, with Bayer Leverkusen’s Alejandro Grimaldo, one of the best attacking full-backs in Europe, expected to start.

Nico Williams and the in-form Barcelona duo of Pedri and Marc Casadó should also play and we ought to see the home team gain control of the game in midfield.

Switzerland have let in 11 goals in five matches so far in this group and even against 10 Spanish players in the recent meeting, they were opened up at the back. There’s every reason to believe the home team will have plenty of joy in the final third here and I’m backing Spain over 1.5 goals and Spain over 4.5 corners at 1/1.

Offers

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down.

Mark Sochon primarily covers Spanish Football for us at Betfred Insights. You can check out Mark's Football Betting Tips along with those from the rest of the Betfred Insights writers on our Football home page...