After their 1-0 victory in Athens in the middle of the week, it is enough to avoid defeat to secure the top position for the Spaniards when they host Sweden on Sunday night.

The visitors slipped to second place in World Cup qualifying group B after being defeated 2-0 by Georgia, a side ranked 68 places below them according to FIFA. Janne Andersson went too full in Batumi but is expected to mix his card game here with Dejan Kulusevski who presses for a start and Albin Ekdal returns from suspension.

Luis Enrique lost Ansu Fati, Yeremi Pino and Eric Garcia to injury before the match against Greece, when the trio withdrew from the Spanish squad. Gavi was forced out against Greece after a blow to the face but the Spanish supremo insists that he is okay to play here and should continue in a midfield trio with Sergio Busquets and Koke.

When it comes to odds Spain against Sweden, the hosts are the clear favorites to get the job done, priced at 9/25 with Bet365 to win, however, Spain have only won 40% of their matches when they have been priced accordingly, so it can be worth meeting them in any capacity.

Given the importance of this match for both sides, there may be a bit of a needle here, which is why the cards have made me want to, even though Felix Brych has the whistle at Estadio de La Cartuja.

The German official does not have the most captivating record for cards. This season he has averaged 3.52 cards per game, although it is worth noting that he has watched three competitive international matches and these have yielded 16Y and 1R cards.

Kristoffer Olsson award of 5/2 appeals. For his nation, he has picked up seven cards in 28 appearances. He has taken a card from this WCQ campaign and will be commissioned to include Busquets and Gavi. The two do not share the ball so he and Ekdal will spend their evening chasing shadows and I suspect their patience will run out. I will have two points on this election.

If you stay short, Gavi’s price of 9/2 seems a bit long. The youngster has already picked up three cards domestically for Barcelona and two in the Champions League, which gives him one card per 90 on average of 0.56! He has not yet taken a card in WCQ, or in any match for Spain, but during the 65 minutes he completed against Greece, he tried three tackles and committed two fouls.

Gavi was not present when these sides last met but Busquets was carded. Interestingly, at least one of the opposition’s central midfielders has been booked in 71% of Sweden’s WC with both Kosovo’s central midfielders booked in both their matches against the yellow and blue. I will have two points on this election.

You can combine these two choices on 20/1 with Bet365 if you want something longer. I think it is worth noting that there were four cards on the back and even though Olsson did not get one, he committed more fouls than any other player on the field (4). I would advise half a point on this.

Good luck if you support any of these ventures and remember to play responsibly.