Kosovo vs England 18/11/19

18 November 2019

Free-scoring England head to the Fadil Vokrri Stadium to tackle Kosovo in the final fixture of the 2020 UEFA European Championship Qualifying (ECQ) Group A.

A 2-1 away defeat to the Czech Republic last time out has officially ended Kosovo’s hopes of reaching the final tournament for the first time in their history. It was one of two losses the hosts have suffered in Group A, with another one arriving against England on the road. Almost half of the goals the Dardanians have shipped in the ongoing qualifying (12) have come in the reverse fixture, where England put five past them in the first half. Still, Bernard Challandes’ men are unbeaten at home in their previous six competitive outings (W5, D1), with their last defeat at home in a competitive match dating back to October 2017. While three of the abovementioned wins saw Kosovo shut out their opponents, five have witnessed them score two or more goals.

The visitors have nailed their place in the next summer’s tournament and are comfortably sitting at the top of the group ahead of the kick-off (W5, L1). By far the deadliest attack in the Euro qualifiers, the Three Lions have netted 33 goals in six of their qualifying fixtures so far, bagging 6+ match goals in both of their wins in the build-up to this encounter. Notably, two of England’s three ECQ road trips have seen them score at least two goals before the halftime and add at least two in the second half. The only potential worry for Gareth Southgate is that his men have struggled to keep a clean sheet in two of three ECQ away matches, conceding two of their total three away goals inside the opening 20 minutes.