Moldova will host the Faroe Islands at the Zimbru Stadium for their opening World Cup 2022 qualifier on Thursday evening.
The two nations have never qualified for a major tournament before and head into Group F as rank outsiders as they are joined by Denmark, Austria, Scotland and Israel.
Match preview
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Italian Roberto Bordin took charge of the Moldovan national team in February, replacing Engin Firat, who failed to win a single game in charge.
The former Atalanta and Napoli midfielder has previously managed Moldovan side Sheriff Tiraspol, where he won two league titles between 2016 and 2018.
Bordin now steps into his first international job with good knowledge of the players he is to work with and hopes that he can help improve the team's form and performances.
Moldova, who are currently 177th in the world rankings, have never had much success during the qualifying stages for a major tournament; their best effort was for the 2014 World Cup, winning three and drawing two of their 10 qualifying matches, although they still finished 10 points behind the top two, England and Ukraine.
Bordin has inherited a squad that are currently enduring a 13-game winless run, with a 1-0 victory over fellow European minnows Andorra in June 2019 their last taste of success.
Thursday's encounter will be Moldova's first against the Faroe Islands, but they will feel that the two games against them will be their best chances of picking up points in Group F.
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The Faroe Islands enjoyed a successful UEFA Nations League campaign in 2020, topping League D Group 1 by winning three and drawing three of their six games and securing promotion to League C.
This came after a regressive two-year period which saw them slip down the world rankings from 78th to 110th. A fresh start was needed and in December 2019, Lars Olsen was replaced by Hakan Ericson, who is now beginning to turn things around.
Ericson has overseen a much-needed transformation in recent months and his progressive, ambitious approach to management has instilled belief into his squad that they can progress as a nation and move their way back up the world rankings.
The Faroe Islands now have twelve full-time professionals playing in nations such as Germany and Spain and with one of the strongest squads they have had in years will now be hoping to compete at a higher level against the bigger nations.
Ericson's side, who have scored in seven of their last eight international matches, will fancy their chances of claiming all three points against an out-of-form Moldova outfit on Thursday and securing a win would be the perfect way to begin their World Cup qualifying campaign.
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Team News
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Moldova boss Bordin is likely to select 36-year-old Eugeniu Cebotaru and Artur Ionita in his starting lineup with Vadim Rata set to join a three-man midfield.
Istanbul Basaksehir centre-back Alexandru Epureanu, who is just three appearances short of his 100th international cap, is hoping to work his way back into the starting lineup ahead of Stefan Efros.
For the Faroe Islands, key midfielder and captain Hallur Hansson is expected to start and could see Brandur Hendriksson Olsen and Solvi Vatnhamar line up alongside him in the middle of the pitch.
Goalkeeper Teitur Gestsson has started in six of the last seven international matches and is set to keep the number one jersey ahead of experienced stopper Gunnar Nielsen.
Forward Klaemint Olsen, who scored three goals in the Nations League, is likely to start up front alongside Gilli Rolantsson and Joan Simun Edmundsson
Moldova possible starting lineup:
Namasco; Jardan, Epureanu, Armas, Reabciuk; Rata; Cebotaru, Ionita; Turcan; Damascan, Nicolaescu
Faroe Islands possible starting lineup:
Gestsson; Danielsen, Faero, Baldvinsson, Davidsen; Vatnhamar, Hansson, B.H. Olsen; Rolantsson, K. Olsen, Edmundsson
We say: Moldova 0-1 Faroe Islands
Both European minnows will view this fixture as one of their best opportunities to pick up points in Group F and start their World Cup qualifying campaign strongly.
With little to separate the two sides, we can see the Faroe Islands edging out Moldova on Thursday evening.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Moldova win with a probability of 41.3%. A win for Faroe Islands had a probability of 32.15% and a draw had a probability of 26.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Moldova win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.72%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.65%) and 2-0 (7.35%). The likeliest Faroe Islands win was 0-1 (9.21%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.62%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 12.6% likelihood.
