Our prediction for this match:
David faces Goliath at RCDE Stadium as Spain and Albania go head to head in a friendly. La Roja clinched their spot at the 2022 World Cup finals thanks to a hard-fought 1-0 win over Sweden, and they are now on a quest to prepare for the upcoming tournament in the best way possible. Brentford goalkeeper David Raya has received his first call-up, while Leeds United defender Diego Llorente has been ruled out with injury.
Ferran Torres made the cut, but his teammate from Barca Adama Traore has been omitted. Juventus striker Alvaro Morata is widely expected to lead the line for the hosts. The Albanians, on the other hand, face an uphill task in Saturday’s clash, and we do not believe that they are capable of spoiling La Roja’s party in Barcelona. You should know that Spain are eyeing their eighth consecutive win over Albania in all competitions.
Highlighted Player (Gerard Pique):
Gerard Pique is a Spanish footballer who was born in Barcelona on 2 February, 1987. He is married to famous Colombian singer Shakira and they have two sons Milan and Sasha. Pique is a product of La Masia, the Barca’s youth academy, but he started his senior career at Manchester United.
He returned to his boyhood club in 2008 and he has been playing for the Catalan giants ever since. The 193-cm-tall footballer is a centre back who is good in the air. His main position is centre back, but he is capable of playing a defensive midfielder if needed. Pique won his sixth La Liga trophy with Barca in the 2015/2016 season and in 2008 he has three Champions League titles with the Catalan giants as well.
During his spell with Manchester United, Gerard Pique won the Premier League trophy (2007/2008) and he helped the Red Devils win the Champions League trophy the same season. Speaking of his international career, the Barcelona defender won the 2010 FIFA World Cup with Spain, while lifting the European Championship trophy two years later.
Highlighted Team (Albania):
The Albanian national football team has represented the country on international stage since 1946, and it is interesting to note that Albania was one of the founding members of UEFA back in 1954. The Eagles have enjoyed very little success in the 20th century, but they managed to show some improvement at the turn of the century and eventually secured their first ever appearance at a major tournament.
Albania qualified for the Euro 2016 finals as they came second in their qualifying group behind Portugal, taking 14 points from 8 matches, with Italian coach Gianni De Biasi at the helm. The Eagles have never qualified for the World Cup finals in 11 attempts, winning mere 14 of 94 World Cup qualifiers.
Former Lazio defender Lorik Cana has worn the captain’s armband over the last few years and he is Albania’s most capped player, while former Chievo forward Erjon Bogdani still holds the record for most goals for the national team, with 18 strikes in 74 appearances.