Sports Mole previews Tuesday’s Euro Champ Qualifying clash between Kosovo and Belarus, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Kosovo and Belarus will bring their respective Euro 2024 qualification campaigns to a close with a contest in Pristina on Tuesday night.
Neither can qualify for next summer’s European Championship through this group or the playoffs, so pride will mostly be at stake when the two teams lock horns in their final Group I fixture.
Match preview
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Kosovo have never qualified for the finals of a major tournament, most recently missing out on the 2022 World Cup, and they will also not be present at next year’s European Championship.
Primoz Gliha‘s side have won two, drawn five and lost two of their nine matches in Group I to collect 11 points, which has left them in fourth spot, one point behind third-placed Israel and six from second-placed Switzerland.
Had Kosovo managed to turn some of their draws into wins, a position in the top two might have been a serious possibility heading into their final game in the group against Belarus.
The home side will enter this match in strong form, having beaten Andorra and Israel in back-to-back fixtures before drawing 1-1 with Switzerland on Saturday night.
Kosovo will now be looking ahead to their qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup, and there are certainly positives that can be taken from their performance in Group I.
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Belarus, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 win over Andorra on Saturday, with Denis Laptez scoring the only goal in the 83rd minute in Budapest.
The victory was just their second in the section, with a record of two wins, three draws and four defeats from nine matches bringing them nine points, which is only enough for fifth position.
Carlos Alos‘s side are the second-lowest goalscorers in Group I behind Andorra (three), having only found the back of the net on eight occasions, but they did play out a 3-3 draw with Switzerland last month.
Belarus finished bottom of their group during qualification for the 2022 World Cup, managing just one victory, and it has been another tough campaign for the national side.
The White Wings have never qualified for the finals of a European Championship, so it is not a surprise to see them again find it difficult to compete at this level.
Kosovo Euro Champ Qualifying form:
Belarus Euro Champ Qualifying form:
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Team News
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Kosovo can certainly take plenty of positives from their 1-1 draw with Switzerland on Saturday, with Muhamet Hyseni netting a leveller for the away side in the 83rd minute of the contest.
Hyseni could now be introduced into the XI, while Lirim Kastrati and Altin Zeqiri are also pushing to be included in the starting side for Tuesday’s contest.
Elbasan Rashani has come up with five goals for his national side, and the 30-year-old should again feature through the middle for Kosovo in this match.
As for Belarus, the bulk of the players that took to the field for the first whistle against Andorra are set to retain their positions in the starting side.
Maksim Skavysh featured off the bench in the team’s 1-0 success last time out, and the 34-year-old could now be introduced into the XI for this game.
Max Ebong is again set to operate in a deeper position for Belarus, while Dmitry Antilevsky is also expected to keep his spot, with the 26-year-old bidding to add to his one international goal.
Kosovo possible starting lineup:
Bekaj; Dellova, Aliti, Krasniqi; Hyseni, Kastrati, Vojvoda, Berisha; Zeqiri, Rashani, Bytyqi
Belarus possible starting lineup:
Ignatovich; Karpovich, Pavlovets, Parkhomenko, Volkov, Pechenin; Kilmovich, Kaplenko, Ebong; Antilevskiy, Skavysh
We say: Kosovo 2-1 Belarus
Kosovo can certainly take positives from their overall performance in this section, with two defeats from nine matches a strong record. Belarus actually beat Kosovo 2-1 in the reverse match back in June, but we are backing the home side to claim all three points on Tuesday night.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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