Preview: Slovakia vs. Chile - prediction, team news, lineups

Slovakia will enter the contest off the back of a 2-2 draw with Montenegro on Thursday, while Chile suffered a 1-0 defeat to Poland in their last match on Wednesday.

Match preview

Slovakia have qualified for the World Cup on just one previous occasion, competing in the 2010 competition, when they reached the last-16 stage of the tournament.

The European nation were not present at the 2014 or 2018 competition, and they also failed to secure a spot in Qatar, having finished third in their Group H qualification section.

Slovakia played in the European Championship in both 2016 and 2020, though, while they will begin their Euro 2024 qualification campaign against Luxembourg in March and will be determined to get off to the best possible start.

Francesco Calzona's side have not been victorious since recording a 1-0 win over Azerbaijan in the UEFA Nations League on June 10, losing two and drawing two of their last four matches.

Slovakia will enter this match off the back of a 2-2 draw with Montenegro in a friendly on Thursday, with the visitors leading by two goals before a late double from Stefan Savic earned the hosts a share of the spoils.

Chile, meanwhile, competed in the finals of the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, but they failed to qualify for the tournament in Russia four years ago and will also not feature in Qatar.

The Red One found it difficult in their South American qualification section, only picking up 19 points from 18 matches, which left them in seventh spot in the table, five points behind fifth-place Peru.

Chile have not actually won a single match since their 3-2 success over Bolivia at the start of February, losing seven of their last eight games in all competitions.

The South American nation played two friendlies towards the end of September, losing 2-0 to Morocco before drawing 2-2 with Qatar.

Eduardo Berizzo's side will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 defeat to Poland, meanwhile, with Krzysztof Piatek scoring the only goal of the contest in the 85th minute.

Slovakia International Friendlies form:

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Chile International Friendlies form:

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Chile form (all competitions):

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Team News

Slovakia are expected to be without the services of Kristian Vallo, who had to be replaced in the latter stages of the first half against Montenegro, so Peter Pekarik could come in for a start.

Robert Bozenik led the line in the team's last match and that is again expected to be the case here, with David Duris operating in a wide position.

On-loan Manchester United goalkeeper Martin Dubravka is likely to retain his spot between the sticks, while the team should be captained by Inter Milan's Milan Skriniar at the back.

As for Chile, Berizzo's side have no fresh injury concerns from their clash with Poland last time out, and it is expected to be a similar starting XI for this match.

A familiar side is expected to include the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Gary Medel, while Diego Valencia is also expected to feature in the final third of the field.

Arturo Vidal should continue in central midfield, while Marcelino Nunez, who plays his club football for Norwich City, is also set to be in the starting XI for the visitors in this match.

Slovakia possible starting lineup:

Dubravka; Pekarik, Satka, Skriniar, Hancko; Kucka, Lobotka, Duda; Bero, Bozenik, Duris

Chile possible starting lineup:

Bravo; Soto, Sierralta, Maripan, Suazo; Mendez, Medel, Vidal; Nunez; Sanchez, Valencia

We say: Slovakia 1-1 Chile

Chile are losing a lot of football matches at the moment, but they have a number of quality players and should provide a tough test for Slovakia in this game. We are expecting to be a close fixture on Sunday, with the spoils potentially being shared at the end of the 90 minutes.

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