Slovakia – Bosnia and Herzegovina

The home team will focus all their attention on defensive action

Despite the lack of star players in this pairing, Slovakia's clash against Bosnia and Herzegovina will be the most important encounter in Group J. While Portugal are unlikely to finish top of the table, their Bratislava clash is a direct candidate to clinch a second promotion to UEFA EURO 2024. Both teams played their opening fixtures in their home arenas, but their performance was incomparable. Slovakia were the favorites to host Luxembourg but as favorites, failed to score against the Princedom with a population of 640,000. The goalless draw extended the Slovak side's unbeaten streak to four games. Unlike their up-and-coming opponents, Bosnia and Herzegovina were a bulwark of confidence against Iceland. The Bosniaks scored the first goal in the 14th minute, and by midway through the second half they had made it 3-0. Before the encounter in Bratislava, bookmakers were undecided, giving a slight edge in the odds to the home side. Italian Francesco Calzona was appointed head coach of Slovakia at the end of August 2022. The Slovaks have played two official matches in September, losing 1-2 to Azerbaijan and a 1-1 draw against Belarus. The results were below the ambitions of the Slovak squad. The Italian coach was looking forward to the result three days ago in a meeting with one of the weaker teams in Europe, but the target was not met. As such, the responsibility ahead of Sunday's encounter is heightened to the max. After failing to qualify for the Mundial, last year's Bosnian side enjoyed impressive success in the League of Nations. In the B-League, Bosnia and Herzegovina defeated each of their opponents once, losing only to Romania in the final round. That earned them top spot in the quartet and the right to play in the next season's Liga A, alongside Europe's top teams. The Slovaks are fully aware of the threat posed by their upcoming opponents, who are no match for Luxembourg. The hosts will play strictly on the defensive side, hoping to get at least one point. We're betting that the match will be a low-scoring affair.