The international break is here with us and here is a look at the things to look out for in the upcoming fixtures.
Russia to capitalize on Sweden’s poor run
Sweden and Russia were among the surprise packages at the World Cup, and they reached the quarter-finals together. Both of these sides are looking to build on their success in the summer by gaining promotion in the Uefa Nations League. The Russians kicked off their Nations League campaign with a 2-1 win over Turkey and quickly followed that with a 5-1 hammering of the Czech Republic. Sweden for their part have lost their last three consecutive outings, and things look dreary for them. Russia are in good scoring form, and they should be able to tear through the visitors, who don’t look to be in the best shape at the moment.
Poland’s potent attack
Portugal will be in search of a second win in the tournament when they make the trip to Poland. They missed the services of Cristiano Ronaldo in the last win away to Italy and they will be without him once again when they face Poland. The hosts have their own attacking talent with the most obvious being Robert Lewandowski. Besides him, there is Piotr Zielinski, who was on target away to Italy last month. There’s also Krzysztof Piątek, whose record stands at 13 goals for Genoa in eight starts this season. This is such an exciting array of talent that we should keep our eyes on.
Hazard to extend excellent club form
Eden Hazard will be out to lead the line for Belgium when they host Switzerland this Friday. The Chelsea man is full of confidence at the moment, and he’s showing how effective he can be in an attacking setup. His national side tends to play similarly to the Blues, and Roberto Martinez is likely to benefit from the improvements that Hazard has seen lately. He currently leads the Premier League goalscoring charts whilst he has found the net in three straight fixtures for the Red Devils. Given his recent form, Hazard is excellently priced to score anytime this week.
Greece seeking revenge
Greece will take on Hungary for the second time in a month when they lock horns in the UEFA Nations League on Friday. They lost the reverse fixture and they will be out for revenge and only three points will be good enough especially in front of their own fans. Both sides have a knack for goal and whereas we expect the home side to triumph we should see goals on both ends.
A case for the youth for Southgate
Gareth Southgate has called up a number of young exciting talent who did not take part in the World Cup for the international break. Ben Chilwell, James Maddison, Mason Mount, Nathaniel Chalobah, Harry Winks and Ross Barkley have all been called up despite not featuring in the World Cup. All these youngsters have done incredibly well for their respective clubs since the turn of the season and their efforts have been rewarded.