Spain completed their group stage campaign at Euro 2024 with a 1-0 victory over minnows Albania in Dusseldorf.
This victory sees La Roja finish top of their group with maximum points, breezing into the Round of 16 as a result and staking their claim as a one of the tournament’s most fancied sides going forward.
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Little lost in rotation:
Perhaps the biggest talking point in the pre-match discussions was the decision of Luis de la Fuente to make 10 changes to the Spanish side that defeated Italy last time out, with only Aymeric Laporte retaining his place in the starting XI.
However, it was clear from the start that this decision had little impact on the quality that was being displayed, with the same keep the ball and pass it around to break the opponent down style of football being played to perfection by Spain’s ‘B team.’
There were several standout performers, with the likes of goalkeeper David Raya, goalscorer Ferran Torres, old-timer Jesus Navas and centre half Daniel Vivian all putting in some good displays for La Roja on the occasion.
The majority of the starting XI has made a real case to be a larger part of de la Fuente’s plans going forward, but it can only wait to be seen whether or not the manager decides to make more use of these otherwise squad players.
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Dani Olmo really is that good:
The most notable performance in this game arguably came from Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo, who put in a good shift from the middle of the park, being a crucial part of ensuring that he and his teammates left this game with a positive outcome.
After a positive season with RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga in which he scored four goals and notched five assists as a key part of Marco Rose’s side, Olmo was given a big opportunity in this fixture and did not disappoint.
Alongside grabbing the assist for Torres’ deciding goal with an excellent through ball, Olmo also managed to complete every dribble he attempted, whilst also maintaining perfection with his long balls.
These stats, combined with him losing just two duels (both on the ground) all game, further highlight the midfielder’s impressive showing with him potentially having the strongest case to be an important figure for Spain as they venture into the knockout stages.
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This won’t be the last that we see of Albania:
They may have been defeated on the day, but it would be cruel of anyone to take anything away from what this Albania side have achieved during both this game their group stage campaign.
Their performance here was a gutsy one, managing to stand toe to toe with some of the finest players that Europe has to offer, with players such as Ylber Ramadani, Jaser Asani and Inter’s Kristjan Asllani all putting in some good showings.
Asllani in particular managed to put up some good numbers, including an 87% pass accuracy that included several key balls, as well a 100% completed dribbles total throughout the game.
Kukqeznjtë also managed to largely impress throughout their entire run, from taking the lead in 23 seconds against European Champions Italy, to going ahead and then scoring a late equaliser against Croatia.
The management team of Sylvinho and Pablo Zabaleta will have plenty to be proud of in this run, and with qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup set to begin following this tournament, there is every reason to believe that we will soon see the red and black of Albania back in the major tournament scene.
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Could Spain be more clinical?:
Though this one is more a matter of opinion, it is worth noting that in their games against Italy and Albania, La Roja managed a total of 36 shots on goal, but in a point that could be of concern to the team, only two of those actually went in.
Spain do possess an array of quality options at the top, with Alvaro Morata, Nico Williams, Lamine Yamal and the aforementioned Torres examples of just how good their attacking players are.
However, there may very well be some supporters or critics that are of the opinion that their side hasn’t been good enough in front of goal with the amount of chances they have had.
This is certainly a point worth noting, as despite the fact that any team is of course not going to score every chance they manage to get, with the quality of their opponents improving in the knockout stages, Spain will have to be wary of the issues in front of goal, as if they aren’t clinical, their opponents could very easily bite them and send them packing.
Explore more stats, standings and news on VAVEL Data: UEFA EURO 2024 · Albânia
