Sevilla's Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan is the venue for Tuesday night's encounter, and it was in Seville back in 2018 when Croatia were hammered 6-0 in the Nations League by La Roja, their only away defeat to Spain in the competition to date.
Spain haven't lost against Croatia since 2018
Luis de la Fuente's side will be looking to repeat that triumph in order to extend their record-breaking unbeaten run (in 90 minutes), which currently stands at 39 games, 29 of which have been won and the other 10 drawn.
Spain were last beaten at home in 2022 by Switzerland, and you have to go back to 2018 for the last time they were beaten when playing in Seville.
It was also in 2018 that Croatia recorded a 3-2 victory against La Roja, which was their last win in any competition against the Spanish.
Furthermore, Croatia have lost seven of the 11 head-to-head encounters against La Roja, including the last three, and haven't won on Spanish soil since a friendly in 1994.
If that doesn't ram home the point to Slaven Bilic's side as to just what a huge test awaits them, then Spain having only allowed 29 shots on target against them in their last 16 competitive games will.
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Excellence in all areas
From potential Golden Boy winner, Pau Cubarsi, at the back, to the world's best midfielder, Rodri, and then many people's tip for the Ballon d'Or up front, Lamine Yamal, Spain have excellence in every department.
That doesn't always guarantee success, of course, but De la Fuente has them working like a well-oiled machine.
England did show one or two vulnerabilities, particularly the high line against pace on the counter, and that might be something that Bilic will look to expose if his side gets the opportunity.
His second spell in charge of Croatia began with a victory against Czechia, thanks to Marco Pasalic’s winner. Luka Modric, who opened the scoring, is still commanding the troops, so despite the difference in the average age of both teams, that experience will count for a lot.
Modric's experience will be key
Modric, uniquely, also scored in Bilic's first game in charge of the national team during his first stint back in 2006, and will be well placed to ensure his teammates know exactly what their new manager will expect in terms of effort and commitment in this match.
Ultimately, that might not be enough against a team that just doesn't know how to lose.
Even when their backs were against the wall against England, De la Fuente sent on Alex Baena and Mikel Oyarzabal, and both scored the goals to win the game.
In Oyarzabal's case, the Real Sociedad striker is still something of an unsung hero, and yet he's scored 18 times in his last 21 appearances for his country.
It may well be that both Baena and Oyarzabal are given a start in this game at the expense of the misfiring Ferran Torres and Nico Williams.
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Olmo and Budimir to the fore?
Spain are unlikely to deviate from the 4-2-3-1 formation that has served them so well, so Fabian Ruiz or Pedri, and Rodri, will sit behind an attacking four that will also include Dani Olmo in the No.10 role.
As he showed against England, that's clearly his preferred position and where he can do the most damage, and it's unfortunate for him that he's not really been able to make that role his own for Barcelona.
Pedro Porro will be missing again, and that means Marc Pubill will once again deputise.
For the visitors, they'll also set up in a 4-2-3-1; however, there's some certainty that their formation will retain a little more defensive balance and look to play on the counter-attack.
Though Ivan Perisic loves to get forward from the left-back position, he can't really countenance doing so in this game, as it would leave Josko Gvardiol in a one-on-one each time with Lamine, and that's not really a scenario the Man City defender is likely to relish.
The Croatian team largely picks itself, though Bilic might mix things up a bit and bring Ante Budimir into the attack to make life difficult for Aymeric Laporte and Cubarsi.
Jason Pettigrove has been the features writer for ScoresStat since 2025, utilising Opta data to form the basis of his articles. He has previously worked for high-profile football clubs, news and media outlets, both in print and digital, and can usually be found watching FC Barcelona when time permits. You can read more of his pieces here.
