Gibraltar vs Latvia – News and Probable Lineups

On Thursday night, Gibraltar faces Letônia at Europa Sports Park in the initial leg of their UEFA Nations League relegation playoff.

Gibraltar secured their place at this stage by finishing second in Group D1, while Letônia is striving to stay in League C after coming last in Group C4.

Match overview

Gibraltar enters this match on the back of 10 consecutive losses in all competitions, indicating a lack of confidence.

During that span, they conceded a total of 31 goals, with defeats against teams such as Faroe Islands and New Caledonia.

On the positive side, between September and November 2024, Gibraltar managed to achieve an unbeaten streak of four matches, finishing second in a group that included San Marino and Liechtenstein.

Despite San Marino clinching the top spot in Group D1, Gibraltar managed a 1-0 victory against their fellow underdogs and drew the other three matches.

However, this success occurred under a different head coach, as Scott Wiseman has led the team during this current 10-match losing stretch, during which they netted only three goals.

Letônia, on the other hand, is also facing a winless streak, having not triumphed in nine matches since their 1-0 victory over Andorra in March of last year.

Nonetheless, they have managed to secure four draws against Azerbaijão, Albânia, Andorra, and North Macedonia. Additionally, Letônia has only lost by narrow margins to Sérvia in two World Cup qualifying matches.

Paolo Nicolato’s squad is currently in a battle to avoid relegation to League D, finishing at the bottom of a group that featured North Macedonia, Armênia, and Faroe Islands.

They managed to escape immediate relegation by earning four points from six matches, the best record among last-placed teams in League C.

While Letônia defeated Gibraltar twice with 3-1 scores in World Cup qualifiers back in 2021, it’s noteworthy that Gibraltar achieved a 1-0 victory over them in a friendly nearly eight years prior to Thursday’s matchup.

Team News

With Ethan Jolley, Louie Annesley, and Jayce Olivero absent from the Gibraltar lineup, Wiseman faces significant defensive challenges.

Julian Valarino might step in at right-back while Jeremy Perera could be considered for a makeshift center-back position if he isn’t included in a three-man midfield setup.

Jaiden Bartolo is anticipated to lead the attack as he aims for his first goal for Gibraltar.

Letônia is expected to implement at least two changes following their 2-1 loss in Sérvia, primarily due to injury issues affecting left-back Maksims Tonisex and Eduards Daskevics.

Sunderland’s Dennis Cirkin might be given a debut as he joins the squad for the first time.

Lukass Vapne may shift to the left wing, while Aleksejs Saveljex could be called up to strengthen the midfield. VladislaxGutkoxis will be fronting the attack in what will be his 60th match for the national team.

Gibraltar probable starting XI:

Hankins; Valarino, Lopes, Perera, Ronan, Mauro; Jessop, Pozo, Torrilla, Scanlon; Bartolo

Latvia probable starting XI:

Matrevic; Savalnieks, Veip, Jurkoxis, Melnik, Cirkin; Ikaunieks, Zelenkox Saveljex Vapne; Gutkoxis

One could argue that Letônia shouldn’t be competing in League D of the Europa League, yet they need to earn their right to compete in a higher-ranked group over the next two games.

Although Gibraltar appears to be developing as a team, Letônia is favored to take a strong advantage into the return leg.