Chris Knows: Czechia vs England Prediction & More

With the opening fixtures of the Nations League now in the books, the international calendar moves into matchday two.

The extended international break at the start of the campaign gives international managers a longer opportunity to assess the players at their disposal, as well as work on tactical structures with them.

Czechia vs England

Whilst much of the pre-match discourse ahead of England’s defeat to Spain was about domestic matters involving Manchester City, Thomas Tuchel’s men are looking to bounce back with a win over Czechia.

England’s attacking power was on full display against the World Champions, with Anthony Gordon and Harry Kane combining well, although the latter’s penalty miss came as a real shock.

It was at the back where England suffered most of their problems, though.

Czechia present an attack that is much less potent than that of La Roja, but Tuchel will still want to see defensive improvements from his charges.

James Trafford will likely play in goal, whilst Nico O’Reilly and Marc Guehi will retain their spots in defence. The Manchester City pair really need to improve from Saturday’s defeat.

Czechia’s lack of firepower will show here and I think England win comfortably. Bet365 are offering 4/6 on over 2.5 goals in the match, and I like those odds.

Spain vs Croatia

Spain got their Nations League campaign off to a blistering start, scoring three goals against England at Wembley.

They will face Croatia in their second game and expect to continue to win.

Lamine Yamal leads their attack, and La Roja just have so many options going forward that can cause defences a lot of trouble.

Croatia aren’t the team they were. We saw that at the World Cup during the summer, although they did win their opening Nations League game against Czechia.

If we discount extra-time, then Spain are still yet to lose an international match since March 2024. I don’t see that changing on Tuesday evening.

Mikel Oyarzabal and Alex Baena were both goalscorers off the bench at Wembley, and I suspect one of the pair will come into the starting XI.

Pedri is a player of immense natural talent, but the question mark over him remains his physical fitness. Many believe he was rushed into the team at Barcelona when he was a teenager and this has impacted his physical development.

However, he is currently injury-free and produces some breathtaking football after being introduced against England. He is expected to be given a start against Croatia, where he will be directly up against the 41-year-old Luka Modric.

Croatia’s defence was suspect during the World Cup, and there needs to be more prolonged evidence that Slaven Bilic has fixed those issues. Whilst I don’t see Spain embarrassing the 2018 World Cup runners-up, I think it will be a fairly routine victory.

Lamine Yamal as an anytime goalscorer at 11/10 with Bet365 is strong, and I like the possibility of pairing Bet 365’s 5/6 odds for Spain winning to Nil with that.

Scotland vs Switzerland

Scotland’s disappointing summer will be a painful memory for supporters for many years, and the team laboured to a 0-0 draw with Slovenia on Saturday in their first competitive match since losing to Brazil in North America.

There is a distinct lack of attacking quality in the Scottish team at the present moment, compounded by the absence of Scott McTominay, who continues to recover from heart surgery.

Switzerland are the next opponents for the Scots and they too represent a rather difficult challenge.

You know what you’re going to see from a Swiss national side. A strong technical level and flashes of brilliance. Their issues are almost always at the back.

I don’t see either team keeping a clean sheet, which makes Bet365’s 1/1 odds for BTTS a decent first-step in a double.