Poland have won five of their last six games at home and have kept a clean sheet in four of those victories. They have won to nil in four of their last five home meetings with Albania, while four of the visitors’ last five defeats have been to nil.

Wales have won five of their last six competitive home fixtures and can make the most of the advantage of playing in Cardiff on Thursday. Bosnia have lost six of their last 12 away games, and rode their luck in a 1-1 draw in Austria in their last trip, but they should find the net after scoring in 11 successive games.

Slovakia are unbeaten in eight home games and have won four of their last five in front of their own fans, keeping a clean sheet in each of these five games. Kosovo have lost two of their last five away fixtures.

Only France managed to beat Ukraine during the group stages of World Cup 2026 qualification and they picked up 10 points from their other four games. Ukraine have won four of their last six fixtures as the designated home team and can grind out a win inside 90 mins against out-of-form Sweden, who lost four of their six qualifiers.

The Republic of Ireland won 3-2 in Hungary in a game which was essentially a playoff for second place, and that impressive win stands them in good stead for this trip to Prague. The Czechs progressed ahead of Gibraltar, Montenegro, and the Faroe Islands, while the Irish came through must-win clashes against both the Hungarians and Portugal in November’s break.

Northern Ireland have not beaten Italy since 1958 and have failed to score in each of the six meetings since then. Gli Azzurri have won four of their last seven games without conceding, while each of Northern Ireland’s last two defeats have seen them fail to find the net.

Both of these teams have seen over 2.5 goals land in five of their last six games and a repeat of that looks likely, especially considering Turkey’s attacking talents and Romania’s injury issues. Side with Turkey to win and over 2.5 goals to land too.

The Republic of Ireland closed out 2025 with three wins, which saw them score six goals from an xG of 6.2. That improved record in the final third should help them in this playoff, but their defensive record is questionable. The Irish have conceded in 15 of their last 19 games, including all four competitive away trips in 2025.

Poland have won five of their last six games at home and have kept a clean sheet in four of those victories. They have won to nil in four of their last five home meetings with Albania, while four of the visitors’ last five defeats have been to nil.

Wales have won five of their last six competitive home fixtures and can make the most of the advantage of playing in Cardiff on Thursday. Bosnia have lost six of their last 12 away games, and rode their luck in a 1-1 draw in Austria in their last trip.

Slovakia are unbeaten in eight home games and have won four of their last five in front of their own fans, keeping a clean sheet in each of these five games. Kosovo have lost two of their last five away fixtures.

Only France managed to beat Ukraine during the group stages of World Cup 2026 qualification and they picked up 10 points from their other four games. Ukraine have won four of their last six fixtures as the designated home team and can grind out a win inside 90 mins against out-of-form Sweden, who lost four of their six qualifiers.

Albania have conceded exactly twice in each of their last four defeats, three of which ended 2-0, while Poland have won by a 2-0 scoreline in two of their last five at home.

Northern Ireland have lost two of their last three games by a 1-0 scoreline and face an Italy side that have won to nil in four of their last seven. Gli Azzurri haven’t conceded a goal in six meetings with Norn Iron, but have only scored five times in their last four encounters.

North Macedonia were humiliated 7-1 away at Wales in their last World Cup qualifier in November and that came on the back of draws with Belgium, Kazakhstan and Latvia. Denmark can make home advantage count and they should be able to win without conceding as their opponents lack firepower.

Poland have won five of their last six games at home and have kept a clean sheet in four of those victories. They have won to nil in four of their last five home meetings with Albania, while four of the visitors’ last five defeats have been to nil.

Northern Ireland have not beaten Italy since 1958 and have failed to score in each of the six meetings since then. Gli Azzurri have won four of their last seven games without conceding, while each of Northern Ireland’s last two defeats have seen them fail to find the net.

The Republic of Ireland won 3-2 in Hungary in a game which was essentially a playoff for second place, and that impressive win stands them in good stead for this trip to Prague. The Czechs progressed ahead of Gibraltar, Montenegro, and the Faroe Islands, while the Irish came through must-win clashes against both the Hungarians and Portugal in November’s break.

Only France managed to beat Ukraine during the group stages of World Cup 2026 qualification and they picked up 10 points from their other four games. Ukraine have won four of their last six fixtures as the designated home team and can grind out a win inside 90 mins against out-of-form Sweden, who lost four of their six qualifiers.

The Republic of Ireland closed out 2025 with three wins, which saw them score six goals from an xG of 6.2. That improved record in the final third should help them in this playoff, but their defensive record is questionable. The Irish have conceded in 15 of their last 19 games, including all four competitive away trips in 2025.

Wales have won five of their last six competitive home fixtures and can make the most of the advantage of playing in Cardiff on Thursday. Bosnia have lost six of their last 12 away games, but they have found the net in 11 successive games and Wales’ only clean sheets in their last 11 attempts came against Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein.

Only France managed to beat Ukraine during the group stages of World Cup 2026 qualification and they picked up 10 points from their other four games. Ukraine have won four of their last six fixtures as the designated home team and can grind out a win inside 90 mins against out-of-form Sweden, who lost four of their six qualifiers. The Swedes have scored in both games since Graham Potter took charge though, so they can find a consolation.

Wales have won five of their last six competitive home fixtures and can make the most of the advantage of playing in Cardiff on Thursday. Bosnia have lost six of their last 12 away games, and rode their luck in a 1-1 draw in Austria in their last trip, but they should find the net after scoring in 11 successive games.

Ukraine’s Spain-based striker Vladyslav Vanat made five appearances without scoring in the group stages but he could end his wait for a qualification strike against the Swedes. The 24-year-old has nine goals in 26 games for Girona in La Liga and comes into the play-offs in solid form with two goals and an assist across his last six games for his club.

Nathan Broadhead came off the bench and scored in the win over North Macedonian and his club form could see him handed a start on Thursday. Broadhead has two goals in his last three games for Championship promotion hopefuls Wrexham.

Parrott has 29 goals for club and country this season, five of which came across his two appearances for the Republic of Ireland in November’s international break. The striker has scored four goals his has last three games for AZ Alkmaar, and he can continue that good form in this key game.

Lanus have put together a three-game winning run and they can upset the odds by seeing off Argentinos Juniors on Thursday night. The hosts have won just three of their nine games so far, although they’ve also only lost once. Argentinos Jrs have scored just six goals in their nine games, while Lanus are scoring on average 1.6 goals per-game and that extra quality in attack could prove the difference.