Kosovovs.Iceland

The hosts will be competing for a place in League B after finishing second in their group, while Iceland are battling to avoid relegation to League C after placing third in their group.

Match preview

Kosovo had a largely impressive Nations League campaign, finishing second in a League C, Group 2 that featured Romania, Cyprus and Lithuania, earning them a chance to compete for promotion to League B.

The Dardanians won four and lost two of their six fixtures, both 3-0 losses against Romania, meaning they placed second in the table with 12 points - six behind Romania and six above third-placed Cyprus.

That leaves Kosovo with four wins and only one defeat from their last five fixtures heading into this matchup, a marked improvement on the one victory and three losses that manager Franco Foda recorded in his initial four games in charge.

While the winning streak will give Kosovo confidence heading into the clash with Iceland, the Dardanians have struggled in this fixture, losing each of the last two encounters.

Iceland, however, are in extremely patchy form coming into the game, with three wins, four losses and one draw from their last nine outings across all competitions.

Those results included two wins, one draw and three defeats in League B Group 4 in the Nations League, leaving Iceland to finish third in the table with seven points - four behind second-placed Turkey and four above bottom-placed Montenegro.

New head coach, Arnar Gunnlaugsson, will be looking to make an immediate improvement with Iceland in the upcoming two clashes with Kosovo, hoping to keep their League B status in the Nations League.

Iceland have faced particular difficulties away from home in recent times, though, suffering four defeats from their last six matches on the road, alongside two victories.

Kosovo Nations League form:

L

W

W

W

W

Kosovo form (all competitions):

L

L

W

W

W

W

Iceland Nations League form:

W

L

D

L

W

L

Team News

Foda's squad list includes the regular starters of Amir Rrahmani, Valon Berisha, Milot Rashica, Edon Zhegrova and Vedat Muriqi, and all five are likely to start here.

Arijanet Muric may have fallen out of favour at Ipswich Town in recent months, but the goalkeeper is expected to start for Kosovo, especially after a star performance for his nation in their last match.

As for Iceland, Orri Steinn Oskarsson has been named the new captain of the national team despite being just 20-years-old, and the striker is likely to start in this one.

Hakon Arnar Haraldsson has been named the vice-captain, and in the absence of Gylfi Sigurdsson, the 21-year-old attacking midfielder will play behind Oskarsson on Thursday.

Kosovo possible starting lineup:

Muric; Hadergjonaj, Rrahmani, Dellova, Rrudhani, Emerllahu, Berisha; Zhegrova, Rashica, Krasniqi; Muriqi

Iceland possible starting lineup:

Valdimarsson; Lunddal, Ingason, Palsson, Tomasson; Johannesson, Traustason, Willumsson, Porsteinsson; Haraldsson, Oskarsson

We say: Kosovo 1-2 Iceland

Written by

Ellis Stevens

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