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The quarterfinals of Euro 2020 start today, and up first is Switzerland against Spain. To get here, the Swiss shocked France on penalty kicks after being one of the four third-place finishers to advance out of the group stage. The Spaniards beat Croatia 5-3 in extra time after finishing second in Group E.
Spain have scored 10 goals in their last two matches and look to be every bit the bonafide contender most thought they were heading into the tournament before starting slowly, likely due to COVID-19 isolation protocols after Sergio Busquets tested positive on the eve of the tournament. I’m skeptical of any team that relies on Alvaro Morata as their striker, but when you’re the type of player who gets a bunch of chances and runs hot and cold on finishing like Morata does, when you get going, the going is good. Don’t sleep on Spain.
For the Swiss, the win over France was their first knockout stage win in the modern era and a much-needed boost for a generation of players (Xhaka, Shaqiri, etc.) who’ve played together internationally since winning the 2009 U-17 World Cup. Unfortunately, current Arsenal man (for how much longer, we’ll see) Granit Xhaka will miss out on today’s contest due to yellow card “accumulation” — in quotes because a suspension for getting two cards over four matches is an absurd rule. I don’t fancy their chances without him.
The matches will be streamed stateside on ESPN+ and FuboTV.
As always, check LiveSoccerTV.com for all your outside-the-U.S. viewing needs, and please do not discuss or share links to illegal streams here.
Lineups:
Switzerland - Sommer, Rodriguez, Akanji, Elvedi, Zuber, Widmer, Freuler, Zakaria, Embolo, Shaqiri, Seferovic
Key player for Switzerland?@nati_sfv_asf | #SUI | #EURO2020
— UEFA EURO 2020 (@EURO2020) July 2, 2021
Spain - Unai Simon, Jordi Alba, Pau Torres, Laporte, Azpilicueta, Pedri, Sergio Busquets, Koke, Sarabia, Ferran Torres, Morata
Predict who will shine for Spain in their quarter-final tie against Switzerland @SeFutbol | #ESP | #EURO2020
— UEFA EURO 2020 (@EURO2020) July 2, 2021
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