Preview: Slovakia vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina - prediction, team news, lineups

Following an impressive 3-0 victory over Iceland on Thursday, Bosnia-Herzegovina find themselves joint-top of Group J alongside Portugal.

Match preview

Despite the absence of captain and leader Milan Skriniar, Slovakia were expected to kick-start their qualifying campaign with a straightforward win against Luxembourg on home soil, but the minnows had other ideas.

Slovakia racked up 18 shots while enjoying the lion's share of possession on Thursday, limiting the visitors to just two attempts on target, but the team containing big-name players such as Napoli's Stanislav Lobotka and Newcastle United's Martin Dubravka failed to make their dominance count.

Francesco Calzona's men have now drawn each of their last four games across all competitions, with a Nations League draw against Belarus preceding friendly draws with Montenegro and Chile at the end of 2022.

When you look at the bigger picture, Slovakia have failed to win any of their previous six outings, while the Falcons lost three of their six Nations League matches to finish behind Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan in a reasonably weak group last year.

It is worth remembering, however, that Slovakia customarily punch above their weight for a relatively small nation, qualifying for the 2010 World Cup before reaching the past two European Championships, so Calzona's men will be hopeful of igniting their campaign before too long.

By contrast, Bosnia-Herzegovina could barely have wished for a better start to their qualifying campaign, as they secured a comfortable 3-0 win against Iceland to send out a message to their Group J rivals.

AC Milan's Rade Krunic got the ball rolling with a first-half brace, while Red Bull Salzburg's Amar Dedic completed the scoring midway through the second half, gifting new head coach Faruk Hadzibegic the perfect start following his appointment in January.

Despite seeing just 37% of the ball on home soil, Bosnia-Herzegovina continuously threatened Iceland's goal, registering 13 shots throughout the contest while restricting their visitors to very few clear-cut chances.

Thanks to Thursday's triumph, the Dragons have now won three of their last four games across all competitions, with five victories, two draws and a solitary defeat coming in their previous eight outings.

Better still, Bosnia-Herzegovina have kept a clean sheet in four of their past five wins, preventing Luxembourg, Romania and Montenegro from scoring before laying down a marker with another shutout victory to kick off their Euro 2024 qualification journey.

Slovakia Euro Champ Qualifying form:

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Slovakia form (all competitions):

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Bosnia-Herzegovina Euro Champ Qualifying form:

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Bosnia-Herzegovina form (all competitions):

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Team News

Weakened by the retirement of iconic midfielder Marek Hamsik, who waved goodbye to international football following his 136th appearance back in November, Slovakia's midfield is now marshalled by Stanislav Lobotka.

The 28-year-old has featured in all of Napoli's Serie A matches this season, playing a pivotal role in his club's unstoppable title charge, with Juraj Kucka and Ondrej Duda expected to join Lobotka in Slovakia's engine room.

With key centre-back Milan Skriniar out injured, the Falcons are likely to start with Norbert Gyomber and Lubomir Satka in the middle of the defence, ahead of goalkeeper Martin Dubravka.

Bosnia-Herzegovina head coach Faruk Hadzibegic managed the minutes of fatigued players against Iceland, leaving Edin Dzeko - the nation's all-time leading scorer - on the bench.

Inter Milan's Dzeko is expected to return to the starting XI on Sunday, joining Ermedin Demirovic in attack, while Smail Prevljak looks set to drop to the bench.

Having kept a clean sheet in midweek, Ibrahim Sehic should keep his place between the sticks, with the centre-back trio of Anel Ahmedhodzic, Hrvoje Milicevic and Sinisa Sanicanin lining up ahead of the Konyaspor goalkeeper.

Slovakia possible starting lineup:

Dubravka; Pekarik, Gyomber, Satka, Hancko; Kucka, Lobotka, Duda; Suslov, Polievka, Haraslin

Bosnia-Herzegovina possible starting lineup:

Sehic; Ahmedhodzic, Milicevic, Sanicanin; Dedic, Hadziahmetovic, Tahirovic, Krunic, Gazibegovic; Dzeko, Demirovic

We say: Slovakia 0-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina

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