Preview: Spain Under-21s vs. Romania Under-21s - prediction, team news, lineups

Looking to record back-to-back victories in the group stage, Spain Under-21s face Romania Under-21s in the Under-21s European Championships on Saturday evening.

La Roja beat hosts Slovakia the hard way on Wednesday afternoon, whereas the Tricolours lost out to tournament favourites Italy.

Match preview

One of the favourites to lift the continental trophy next month, Spain were not surprised to take a commanding lead during the first half of their Group A opener versus Slovakia on Wednesday afternoon, with Marc Pubill and Mateo Joseph finding the net.

However, La Roja were soon shocked into action during the opening minutes of the second period, when strikes from Samuel Kopasek and Tomas Suslov equalised the contest for the Falcons, who were denied any points late on by a Cesar Tarrega header.

After dramatically claiming victory in the dying embers of a five-goal thriller earlier in the week, Spain are now sitting pretty at the summit of the Group A standings, knowing that victory on the weekend would all-but seal their safe passage into the quarter-finals.

La Roja's success on Wednesday afternoon prevented them from suffering three straight losses for the first time in over 15 years, with Spain defeated in friendly fixtures by Germany and Ukraine in late March and early June respectively.

On the contrary, Romania have now lost consecutive matches for the first time since June 2023 after an opening-round defeat to Italy in Group A on Wednesday night in front of just over 2,000 supporters at City Arena in Trnava, Slovakia.

For a second match running, the struggling Tricolours were unable to breach the net of the opposition's goalkeeper, with a first-half effort from Roma starlet Tommaso Baldanzi proving enough to claim maximum points for the Group A favourites.

Experiencing a poor vein of form at the worst possible moment, Romania are desperate to avoid recording three straight defeats for the first time since September 2022, when Saturday's foes Spain were on hand to batter their opponents 4-1 in a friendly fixture.

A star of his nation's qualification campaign - scoring five goals across 10 matches - Louis Munteanu is looking to build on a sensational season in the top flight of Romania for CFR Cluj, in which he netted 23 goals across 35 Superliga appearances.

Spain Under-21s Euros form:

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Spain Under-21s form (all competitions):

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Romania Under-21s Euros form:

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Romania Under-21s form (all competitions):

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Team News

After making positive impacts off the bench last time out, Hugo Bueno and Alberto Moleiro will be pushing for Spain starts this weekend.

A key for Leeds United in the Championship during 2024-25, Joseph opened his tournament with a strike versus Slovakia and should retain his spot on Saturday.

Romania remain without the services of Octavian Popescu, who picked up a season-ending injury at the start of November.

The Tricolours' forward line could be freshened up after firing a blank against Italy, with Ovidiu Perianu competing for a starting place.

Spain Under-21s possible starting lineup:

Iturbe; Pubill, Tarrega, Mosquera, Martin; Turrientes, Guerra, Sanchez, Moleiro, Lopez; Joseph

Romania Under-21s possible starting lineup:

Sava; Strata, Ignat, M Ilie, Borza; Corbu, Akdag, Grameni; Stoica, R llie, Munteanu

We say: Spain Under-21s 3-1 Romania Under-21s

Finding the net with ease against Slovakia earlier in the week, Spain should be expecting the same versus Romania this weekend.

The Tricolours face another one of the pre-tournament favourites in a competitive Group A, with a second defeat likely for the designated away side.

Written by
Carter White

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