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Sports Illustrated

Sport

Ewan Ross-Murray

Spain vs. Serbia—International Friendly: Preview, Predictions and Lineups

Spain Serbia World Cup Lamine Yamal Álvaro Morata Ferran Torres Martín Zubimendi Mikel Oyarzabal Nico Williams Pedri

Spain takes to the pitch for the first time this calendar year for a friendly match against fellow Europeans Serbia on Friday night.

The reigning European champions breezed through their qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup and preparations are beginning to intensify for the tournament. La Roja will be among the leading contenders to clinch the trophy courtesy of their star-studded squad and impressive momentum under Luis de la Fuente.

Spain hasn’t been beaten in 90 minutes in over two years and appear unlikely to surrender that record in Villarreal on Friday. They fired three unanswered goals past their upcoming visitors in the UEFA Nations League meeting on home soil in 2024, and are unbeaten in all three past duels with Serbia.

Veljko Paunović only took over as Serbia manager last November and the former Chicago Fire boss, who has also spent time coaching in Spain, is tasked with changing the mood after a disastrous World Cup qualification campaign that saw them finish behind second-placed Albania and miss out on the playoffs.

Spain was expected to play Argentina on Friday in another edition of La Finalissima—a match in which the European Championship winners face the Copa América victors—but the 2026 edition of the event was canceled.

Spain vs. Serbia Score Prediction

European Champions Saunter to Victory

Spain players celebrate — Spain are in excellent form ahead of Friday’s game. | GIORGI ARJEVANIDZE/AFP/Getty Images

Even the most confident Serbia supporters will be fearing the worst against Spain on Friday night. While pride is the only thing on the line for both nations, Paunović’s men must be on high alert at the Estadio de la Cerámica, or risk leaving Spain with their tails between their legs.

Talent is no issue for Serbia, which has some high-performing individuals, but cohesion is the major issue for the surprise strugglers. Their effortlessly brilliant hosts should take full advantage of any uncertainty in the away dressing room on Friday.

Spain is unlikely to decimate its opponents, but a route win is projected.

Ridiculous Spain form: There’s a reason Serbia will be terrified heading to Villarreal. Spain won five of its six World Cup qualification matches and has tasted victory in 20 of its last 25 matches across all competitions. They have proved largely unstoppable, only failing to claim victory during that run against the Netherlands, Portugal and Türkiye.
Attacking superstars: Spain is without some key forwards, such as Nico Williams and Álvaro Morata, but it still boasts an abundance of talent capable of dismantling Serbia. Lamine Yamal will be the chief threat, but Mikel Oyarzabal, Ferran Torres, Férmin López and Dani Olmo are others waiting to pounce.
Serbia’s struggles: Serbia’s managerial change last year came for a reason. Performances have underwhelmed for some time and results have been incredibly patchy, despite a largely impressive squad. Serbia’s only victories since defeat to Spain back in October 2024 have come against Austria, Andorra and Latvia.

Prediction: Spain 3–0 Serbia

Spain Predicted Lineup vs. Serbia

Spain is missing some regulars for March’s friendlies. The aforementioned Morata and Williams are both not included, the latter due to injury, while Mikel Merino and Fabián Ruiz are notable absentees as they recover from long-term injuries.

Elsewhere, Gavi, Aleix García, Pablo Barrios, Dani Carvajal and Robin Le Normand are among those missing that were included in De la Fuente’s squads across last year’s World Cup qualification campaign.

Spain is expected to go strong for Friday’s friendly after such a long gap between matches, likely resulting in appearances for Pedri, Rodri, Martín Zubimendi and Lamine Yamal despite significant workloads this calendar year.

Spain predicted lineup vs. Serbia (4-2-3-1): Simón; Llorente, Cubarsí, Laporte, Cucurella; Pedri, Zubimendi, Rodri; Yamal, Torres, Oyarzabal.

Serbia Predicted Lineup

Serbia are also missing key personnel for March’s friendlies, with Juventus forward Dušan Vlahović among the high-profile absentees. The striker only made his long-awaited injury comeback against Sassuolo last weekend and won’t be rushed back into action after nearly four months on the sidelines.

Andrija Živković, Marko Grujić, Ivan Ilić, Nemanja Radonjić and in-form Aleksandar Katai all miss out, too, leaving Paunović particularly short of attacking options in wide areas.

The positive news for Serbia is the presence of some seasoned professionals. Aleksandar Mitrović leads the line, while a combative midfield includes Sergej Milinković-Savić and Sasa Lukić. A center back pairing of Nikola Milenković and Strahinja Pavlović is not to be messed with.