Switzerland vs. Spain: Top Storylines, Odds, Live Stream for Women's World Cup 2023
Switzerland and Spain kick off the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup knockout round on Saturday (1 a.m. ET, FS1, FoxSports.com, Fox Sports app) with the only round-of-16 clash between two European sides.
Switzerland won Group A with its defense, as it produced three clean sheets. Scoring could be an issue for the Swiss since they only netted two goals against the Philippines in their opening game.
Spain took second in Group C after it lost by four goals to Japan. La Roja controlled the possession in that contest, but Japan was brilliant on the counter.
Alexia Putellas and Co. need to produce a strong response to that defeat to avoid facing a similar fate as their Group C finale.
Spain will likely dictate the match flow, but that is not exactly a bad thing for a Swiss side confident in its defending.
Match Odds
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Money Line
Spain (-300; bet $300 to win $100)
Switzerland (+800; bet $100 to win $800)
Draw After 90 Minutes (+380)
Over/Under
Over 2.5 Goals (-105)
Under 2.5 Goals (-120)
Switzerland Favors Low Scoring Game
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Clean sheets and low-scoring games have been part of the Swiss DNA recently.
The Group A winner played Norway and New Zealand, its two toughest group foes, to scoreless draws to finish off the group stage.
The Swiss have five scoreless draws in nine matches in 2023. The last 0-0 result prior to the World Cup came against knockout-round qualifier Morocco.
Switzerland scored multiple goals twice in 2023, once in the Group A opener against the Philippines and against Zambia in a pre-World Cup friendly.
The path to victory is very simple for the Swiss. They need another stout defensive performance, and they could take a page out of Japan's game plan to strike on the counter against Spain.
Barcelona forward Ana Maria Crnogorcevic could be the key to unlocking Spain's possession-based style. The 32-year-old has plenty of experience playing with and against most of the Spanish players from her time in Liga F.
Spain Needs Bounce Back Performance
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Spain was shellshocked by Japan in its group-stage finale.
Japan perfectly executed a handful of counter-attacks to stun La Roja and top Group C with nine points.
An argument can be made that Spain drew the better matchup out of Group C because it does not have to face a Norway side that generated confidence from a six-goal thumping of the Philippines.
Regardless of who the opponent is, Spain needs to turn in a much better performance of its own.
La Roja only managed to place two shots on target against Japan despite holding 68 percent of the possession.
Spain needs to have more purposeful possession and carve into the Swiss back line more than it did against Japan.
Spain has the attacking arsenal in Putellas and Jennifer Hermoso to achieve that feat. Saturday would be the perfect time for Putellas to produce her first-ever World Cup goal.
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