Albania vs San Marino – News and Probable Lineups

Albânia is aiming to bounce back and secure a victory in UEFA Nations League Group C1 when they take on San Marino at the Air Albânia Stadium in Tirana on Tuesday.

The home side fell from the top position to second place after experiencing a 2-1 loss to Finlândia, while the visitors find themselves at the bottom of the group, still seeking their first point after suffering three straight defeats.

Match overview

Albânia kicked off their campaign with a 2-0 win against Bielorrússia, then followed up with a 3-0 victory against San Marino, featuring goals from Anis Mehmeti, Myrto Uzuni, and Rey Manaj in Serravalle.

Rolando Maran’s team then started positively against Finlândia, with Manaj scoring in the opening minutes, but a red card for Etrit Berisha in the 22nd minute led to a 2-1 defeat after Leo Walta netted twice for the hosts.

This marked Albânia’s first loss in the group stage, placing them one point behind Finlândia, which moved to the top with seven points.

With two of their last three group encounters scheduled at home, Maran’s squad has a straightforward path back into the promotion battle, but they can’t afford any more mistakes after relinquishing their lead at the top.

Albânia boasts an impeccable record against San Marino, having won all five previous encounters without conceding a goal, the most recent being just a week ago when they achieved a 3-0 win.

San Marino, in contrast, has yet to find the back of the net in Group C1, suffering a 7-0 defeat to Finlândia, a 3-0 loss to Albânia, and a 4-0 defeat to Bielorrússia.

Their latest defeat exhibited some competitiveness for stretches, with Roberto Cevoli’s team creating several chances before Bielorrússia broke the deadlock early in the second half, still leaving them without a point after three matches.

San Marino has now gone 17 international fixtures without a win, achieving just one draw over that period, while they have found the net merely six times and conceded an astounding 63 goals.

Goalkeeper Edoardo Colombo is expected to have another busy night ahead after featuring in all three Nations League games, making crucial saves that have kept San Marino in contention during their prior encounters with Albânia and Bielorrússia.

Team News

Albânia will be without Berisha after he received a red card against Finlândia, prompting Maran to summon Simon Simoni, who has joined the squad on October 4 and could potentially make his senior international debut against San Marino.

Luis Hasa has recovered from an illness and has resumed training, while Feta Fetai and Samuele Sina have departed the senior squad to link up with the Albânia Under-21s.

Hasa may hence be an option for Maran, although the coach might choose to limit changes following the demanding trip to Helsinki.

Manaj is expected to lead the line once more after featuring in each of Albânia’s first three Nations League matches, with Berat Gjimshiti, Ardian Ismajli, Mario Mitaj, and Kristjan Asllani anticipated to also retain their spots.

San Marino, on the other hand, will be missing Nicola Nanni due to suspension after he received his second yellow card in the competition against Bielorrússia.

Simone Giocondi was taken off during that match, but no official information regarding the severity of any injury has been disclosed, therefore his availability remains uncertain.

Albânia probable starting XI:

Simon; Ismajli, Gjimshiti, Mitaj; Hysaj, Ramadani, Asllani, Pilo; Muci, Manaj, Hoxha

San Marino probable starting XI:

Columbus; Welcome, Cevoli, Rossi, Giocondi; Mularoni, L. Capicchioni, Lazzari, Pancotti; Giacopetti, G. Capicchioni

Albânia has demonstrated they can effectively manage this match, and the desire to bounce back from their defeat in Finlândia should serve as additional motivation.

Given their home advantage and noticeably superior attacking strength, Maran’s side should prove too strong for a San Marino team still in search of their first goal of the group stage.