Kazakhstan vs Slovenia

UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying kicks off for Kazakhstan and Slovenia as they lock horns in the opening game of Group H at the Astana Arena.

Yet to qualify for the European Championship finals, Kazakhstan’s bid to reach an unprecedented feat in the nation’s history gets underway on the back of three consecutive defeats at the tail-end of 2022. Head coach Magomed Adiyev hopes the new calendar year will bring a change of fortunes as his men aim to build on securing promotion to League B of the Nations League last year. Picking up points in the curtain-raising Group H fixture could prove crucial to Kazakhstan’s effort to claim a top-two finish, and there’s no better place to achieve that than Astana. The ‘Hawks’ won each of their three 2022 Nations League home outings by an aggregate score of 6-2, netting precisely twice on each occasion.

In the meantime, Slovenia’s hopes of qualifying for only their second European Championship finals as an independent nation are as far as they get after completing the last calendar year on a six-match unbeaten run, friendlies included (W3, D3). Despite failing to earn promotions to League A courtesy of an underwhelming third-place finish in Group B/4, the Slovenians can draw confidence from going unbeaten in their last four Nations League fixtures (W1, D3). However, there’s always a glaring issue concerning Slovenia’s travel sickness. Before overcoming Romania 2-1 on their most recent road trip, Matjaz Kek’s men had gone winless in their previous six away internationals (D5, L1), bagging under 1.5 goals five times in the process. Winless in a competitive away match since September 2021 (D3, L1), Slovenia will have to take a cautious approach in their first-ever meeting with Kazakhstan.