Neither team will qualify for the World Cup, but Northern Ireland entered the playoffs via the Nations League. In this qualifying round, Great Britain played at its best, defeating inferior Luxembourg away and clinging to points at home, but failed to pick up any points away against World Cup hopefuls. Northern Ireland has suffered significant losses—half of its starting lineup will be missing due to injury and suspension, particularly in midfield. At home, the team consistently beats opponents of Luxembourg's caliber.
Luxembourg has lost all its matches in this qualifying round. The visitors have significant attacking issues—attacking midfielder Daniel Sinani is starting in that position without two key players, and the Red Lions have scored only one goal overall in the qualifying round. Northern Ireland has a strong home defense, so it's logical to expect a narrow victory for Great Britain.
The Netherlands' task in this match doesn't look difficult – to qualify directly for the World Cup, they only need to avoid defeat, although Ronald Koeman's men are unlikely to be aiming for a draw. The "Orange" rarely drop points at home and play aggressively, not only attackingly but also reliably in front of goal – the Netherlands have kept a clean sheet in ten of their last thirteen home qualifying matches.
The Lithuanians will be looking to finish this disappointing qualifying campaign with a bang, in which they failed to secure a single win. The Baltics will likely finish bottom of their group, behind even Malta, and are unlikely to be able to claim points in Amsterdam. However, it's worth noting that Lithuania has lost by more than three goals in only two of their previous 15 away matches in European and World Cup qualifying.
We expect a comfortable victory for the hosts.
The meeting of these two Balkan neighbors is more than just a match, it's a battle of passion and history. Montenegro, inspired by their fans, will try to put up a fight against experienced Croatia, a World Cup finalist.
The star-studded Croatians will dictate the game, but the Montenegrins are ready to fight for every ball.
Prediction: Croatia is the favorite, but an easy victory won't be possible. Montenegro will take advantage of the home field. A cautious first half and an open second half are possible. The bet is on a minimal victory for Croatia (0-1 or 1-2) thanks to the quality of their players. The match promises to be a highlight of the evening for fans of Balkan football.
A decisive match for the Poles. They can only hope that Lithuania will also pull off a miracle and beat the Netherlands on their home turf. But even then, the Poles have no chance—the difference in goals scored and conceded between them is too significant.
In the last round, Malta performed a heroic and historic feat. But that result was largely due to the Finns' own carelessness. Poland will not repeat Finland's mistakes. Moreover, paradoxically, Malta scored all two of its goals in the qualifying round away from home. So Poland arrives here, calmly takes three points, and goes home to prepare for the playoffs.
And another moment in the realm of anniversaries. This match could be the 100th match for the Polish national team for veteran Kamil Grosicki.