Ukraine and Spain play their final Euro 2016 Qualifying match on Monday, with different goals in mind for both of them. Having secured their spot in the continental tournament, Spain might use this game to solve a few doubts and to find suitable replacements for key elements that have not performed well recently or have been ruled out due to injury, while the home side needs a victory to take the group's second place, or maybe win their spot in the tournament directly as the best third placed team in the Qualifiers.
Vicente del Bosque's crew sealed their tickets to France this Friday, defeating Luxembourg easily with a couple of braces by Santi Cazorla and super sub Paco Alcácer. Meanwhile, Ukraine came up with a 2-0 away victory over Macedonia, keeping their second place hopes alive for Monday's matchup.
Spain
Vicente del Bosque may have found the ideal striker after just eight games. Valencia's striker Paco Alcácer has shown excellent form whenever Del Bosque has given him playing time, and with Alvaro Morata injured, the 22-year old might start for La Roja against Ukraine. Alcácer has scored six goals in eight matches with the Spanish National Team, and some experts are starting to wonder if he's the man who could lead Spain back to glory, since Diego Costa doesn't seem too comfortable when playing under Del Bosque's system.
Another issue the coach must solve soon involves David Silva, who left the game against Luxembourg with an injury and will be out for a few weeks. Maybe it's time for La Roja to take things easily, and try to put up the best performance with what they've got right now.
Ukraine
Mikhail Fomenko's side has already secured their playoff spot as the third-place of Group C, but they could get something more. Tied with Slovakia at 19 points, Ukraine needs to win their game and hope Slovakia doesn't do the same against Luxembourg. If those results add up, the yellow side could see their efforts rewarded. But if that doesn't work out, Ukraine could make it directly to France as the best third-place in the Euro Qualifiers. The only team that could beat them to that ticket is Ireland, who will face Poland in Group D.
With the help of Yevhen Konoplyanka and Andriy Yarmolenko, the team's top scorer, Fomenko's team has two options of making it directly to the continental tournament, all they have to do is not slip against La Roja.
Head to head
Ukraine has never won a single competitive match against Spain. Out of their four previous meetings, the Yellow side has only drawn one game and lost three against the Spanish side. Their previous game during these qualifiers ended up with a 1-0 win for Spain, courtesy of Alvaro Morata's goal. Nevertheless, a depleted Spanish side could give in to the Ukrainian pressure when they meet at Olimpiyskyi Stadium in Kiyv.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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