Yet, their defence got off to a humiliating start courtesy of the Netherlands, who inflicted a 5-1 defeat on Vicente del Bosque's men. It was the first time that the Spaniards had shipped five goals in a single match since 1963 and their campaign never recovered from that point.

However, while the Iberians headed home after the group stages, Holland, under Louis van Gaal's guidance, surprised many by reaching the semi-finals before being knocked out by Argentina on penalties.

Nine months on, despite it only being a friendly, revenge is bound to be on the mind of every member of the Spanish team when they take on the Dutch in Amsterdam on Tuesday night.

They may well fancy their chances as well, with Oranje struggling to adapt to life under new head coach Guus Hiddink.

Since taking charge of his nation back in July, the veteran boss has been in the dugout for seven matches, four of which have ended in defeat.

With a victory highly important to the under pressure Hiddink, he is expected to name a strong starting lineup, which may include the likes of Daley Blind, Wesley Sneijder and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, but experienced duo Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben are both ruled out through injury.

Spain's form since their World Cup embarrassment has also been patchy, although they have been able to chalk up three victories from their previous four outings.

Juan Bernat is expected to replace the injured Jordi Alba at left-back, with David de Gea, Daniel Carvajal and Cesc Fabregas all pushing for inclusion.

At some stage, Del Bosque could also hand debuts to young Malaga striker Juanmi and Sevilla winger Vitolo.

Overall, Holland have won half (including three of the last four) of their 10 meetings with Spain, who have emerged victorious on four occasions.

Netherlands:

Form in friendlies: LDWWLL
Form in all competitions: LWLLWD

Possible starting lineup: Krul; Janmaat, Martins Indi, Bruma, Blind; N De Jong, Narsingh, Depay, Afellay, Sneijder; Huntelaar

Spain:

Form in friendlies: LWWWLL
Form in all competitions: WLWWLW

Possible starting lineup: De Gea; Carvajal, Bartra, Pique, Bernat; Fabregas, Busquets; Isco, Silva, Iniesta; Juanmi

Sports Mole says: 1-1