Albania host Luxembourg in an international friendly match at Air Albania Stadium in Tirana on Saturday. Neither of the two teams are preparing for the World Cup, with their next competitive assignments set for the UEFA Nations League.
Hosts Albania come into this game following a 1-0 loss to Israel on Wednesday. Oscar Gloukh scored the only goal of the game to secure the win for Israel.
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The Eagles lost out on World Cup qualification after a 2-1 defeat to Poland in the UEFA playoff semifinals, a match which ended in defeat for Albania despite them taking an early lead.
In May, Italian manager Rolando Maran was named the Albanian national team’s new coach, replacing Brazilian manager Sylvinho. After a poor start against Israel, Maran will be targeting a confidence-boosting win against Luxembourg.
Without World Cup football to look forward to, Albania move forward with the UEFA Nations League in mind, where they will face Belarus, Finland, and San Marino.
Meanwhile, Luxembourg lost 1-0 to Italy in a friendly match on Wednesday, with Inter Milan’s Pio Esposito scoring the goal for the Italians.
The Azzurri fielded their youngest-ever starting 11 since 1912, featuring eight debutants and captained by goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Luxembourg will also use these friendly matches to prepare for competitive football later in the year, with the new cycle of the UEFA Nations League seeing the Red Lions in the same group as Bulgaria, Iceland, and Estonia.
Albania vs Luxembourg head-to-head stats and key numbers
- Albania and Luxembourg have faced each other on seven occasions, with each country winning three games apiece, while one further game ended in a draw.
- Albania are ranked 65th in the world, while Luxembourg are in 98th place, according to the latest FIFA World Rankings.
Albania vs Luxembourg prediction
Albania will be boosted by home advantage, and they will aim to control possession while dictating the tempo of the game. The Eagles are known to be fairly defensively compact, and while their new Italian coach has only just arrived, they will likely become even more defensively sound before the next Nations League kicks off.
Luxembourg have traditionally been considered an easy team to beat for most other European teams, but that is no longer the case, and they should adopt a low-block defensive shape to frustrate the Albanians, looking to surprise them on the counterattack.
Luxembourg will not make it easy for the Eagles, but we expect Albania to secure the victory.
Prediction: Albania 2-0 Luxembourg
Albania vs Luxembourg betting tips
Tip 1: Albania to win
Tip 2: Albania to score first
Tip 3: Under 2.5 goals
Edited by Peter Pedroncelli
