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Spain booked the first spot in the UEFA Euro 2024 final on Tuesday with a 2-1 win over France.
La Roja came back from a goal down in the first half to secure their spot in Berlin on Sunday against the winner of Wednesday’s semifinal between England and the Netherlands.
Spain is going after its third Euro title in the last five tournaments, a span that dates back to the start of its golden generation’s success in 2008.
The five-time Euro finalist has looked like the best team in the tournament and it will be favored to win the championship regardless of which team it faces.
Final: Spain vs. England/Netherlands (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, Fox)
England vs. Netherlands (Wednesday, 3 p.m. ET, Fox)
It’s hard to bet against Spain winning the Euro 2024 crown at this point.
Spain cruised through the group stage and was dominant for most of its three knockout-round matches.
Spain scored multiple goals in each of its elimination games. Its win over France was its most impressive triumph yet because it had to respond to an early French opener from Randal Kolo Muani.
The Spanish also played without defensive stalwart Dani Carvajal due to suspension. The job was not easy for Jesus Navas in his matchup against Kylian Mbappe, but he received enough help to slow down the Real Madrid attacker.
Spain’s own attack looked strong on Tuesday despite not getting any production out of striker Alvaro Morata.
Teenage phenom Lamine Yamal hit a wonder strike to pull the game level and then Dani Olmo netted the game-winning goal before halftime.
Olmo was used as a substitute for most of the tournament before the quarterfinals, but after Pedri was knocked out of the tournament with an injury, he filled in for the semifinals. Olmo’s goal tied him with four others atop the Golden Boot standings. Olmo would win the Golden Boot if the tournament ended now because he has an assist tiebreaker on the other top scorers.
The combination of Morata, Yamal, Olmo and Nico Williams will be difficult for either the England or Netherlands defense to keep at bay.
If England is the opponent, Spain would be playing with less pressure since so many expectations have been put on the English since they fell to Italy on home soil in the UEFA Euro 2020 final.
The Netherlands’ attack has been as impressive as Spain’s unit, but the Dutch have only held two clean sheets in the tournament.
The more open Dutch defense could lead to enough opportunities for Spain to pounce on over the course of 90 minutes.
England or the Netherlands could compete with Spain at their best, but no team has been as consistently good as Spain over the last month, which makes it hard to pick against La Roja’s title quest.
Prediction: Spain over England
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