Spain vs. Luxembourg: Date, Time, Live Stream for Euro 2016 Qualifier
Spain have a chance to qualify for Euro 2016 on Friday when Luxembourg visit the Estadio Municipal Las Gaunas for a Group C qualifier.
Vicente del Bosque's men sit atop the group with 21 points through eight games and will clinch qualification with a victory over Luc Holtz's minnows.
Two matches remain, and only Ukraine (16 points) and Slovakia (19) can catch the defending European champions. But a victory over Luxembourg on Friday would guarantee at least a second-place finish for La Roja.
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The top two teams in each of the nine groups qualify automatically for Euro 2016, along with hosts France. The best third-place team also qualifies automatically, with the remaining eight entering two-legged playoffs for the final four berths.
Spain reclaimed control of Group C during the last round of matches in September. Having lost to Slovakia in October 2014, La Roja needed a victory in the return leg to take over first place. First-half goals from Jordi Alba and Andres Iniesta put Del Bosque's side on track for a valuable 2-0 victory.
Luxembourg have claimed only four points through eight qualifiers, beating Macedonia and drawing with Belarus. Both of those matches were at home.
Date: Friday, October 9
Time: 7:45 p.m. BST (2:45 p.m. ET)
Venue: Estadio Municipal Las Gaunas, Logrono
TV Info: Sky Sports 2/HD (UK); ESPN2, ESPN Deportes (U.S.)
Team News
Del Bosque has something of a selection crisis in defense. Center-backs Sergio Ramos and Inigo Martinez are unavailable due to injury, as is full-back Dani Carvajal. In addition, defensive midfielder Bruno Soriano is out with a knee problem. To help fill the void, Del Bosque has called in Villarreal's Mario Gaspar and Athletic Bilbao's Mikel San Jose and Xabi Etxeita.
"I was at home and was very excited when I got the call," Etxeita said in a press conference (h/t Goal.com). "It's a surprise. I didn't expect it."
He added: "I'm happy the coach has placed his trust in me and I'm happy to be in the squad. It has come as a 27-year-old. I've had to work hard for this."
Further complicating matters for Del Bosque is an injury to Iniesta. The 31-year-old midfielder limped out of Barcelona's win over Bayer Leverkusen last week in the UEFA Champions League with a hamstring issue.
Both sides have a player suspended. Spain striker Diego Costa and Luxembourg defender Chris Philipps are banned for the fixture.
Prediction
Luxembourg shouldn't pose much of a problem for Spain. When the same two teams met last October, Spain collected a 4-0 win in Luxembourg. Look for more of the same on Friday, even with so many players missing for Spain.
Spain 4-0 Luxembourg
