SLOVAKIA will be looking to boost their confidence and get some shooting practice in for Euro 2024 when they face perennial whipping boys San Marino in a friendly ahead of the finals.
The Slovakians are gearing up for their third successive Euro finals and could spring a few surprises in Germany after looking pretty good in qualifying.
Francesco Calzona's men won seven of their 10 games and their only two defeats came against runaway group winners Portugal. So they will fancy their chances of coming through a section in Germany that also includes Belgium, Ukraine and Romania.
San Marino can only dream of ever gracing a major finals, having never won a qualifier for either the World Cup or the Euros. The only victory in their entire history came in a friendly against Liechtenstein 20 years ago so this clash with the Slovaks could feel like a training game.
How the bookies view it: Minnows are Slo-hopers
You can always count on huge odds for San Marino whenever they're in action and Bet365 make them 40/1 shots for this one. Slovakia are just 1/40 and the draw pays 15/1.
Head to head: Seven and hell for San Marino
San Marino have only faced Slovakia four times but two of those games have ended in 7-0 defeats. They also lost 5-0 at home in 2007 but at least managed a goal a year later when the Slovaks last came calling.
Players to watch: Haraslin to do some hassling
Slovakia spread the goals around in Euro 2024 qualifying and winger Lukas Haraslin was their top scorer with just three strikes. The Sparta Prague man should get some game time but I've yet to see any scorer prices.
San Marino don't manage many goals but Filippo Berardi has the best strike rate in their squad, with three goals from 28 caps. The forward is the man most likely to shock the Slovaks with a goal here.
Probable teams
Slovakia will probably make a few subs to get minutes into legs but I'd imagine they will start with a strong team. San Marino might give some youngsters a chance to shine.
Slovakia: Dubravka; Gyomber, Vavro, Skriniar, Hancko; Kucka, Lobotka, Duda; Dusic, Bozenik, Haraslin.
San Marino: Colombo, D'Addario, Fabbri, Franciosi, Rossi, Tosi, Golinucci, Capicchioni, Lazzari, Mularoni, Berardi.
Anything else catch the eye?
Although San Marino have still been losing in recent months, the margin of defeats has been getting much tighter. Denmark and Finland both only beat them 2-1 in the Euro qualifiers so it may not be a goalfest.
Finding bets has been hard for this game but Bet365 have a market for total goal minutes, which adds up the time of goals scored. Backing under 175 minutes pays 5/6.
Slovakia will want to get their noses ahead early on and should start at a decent tempo so I like the 5/6 on offer at Bet365 for a goal inside the first 26 minutes. A strike inside the first 10 minutes boosts the odds to 12/5 with the same firm.
This match could peter out if the Slovaks get a few early goals and the latter stages could be a non-event. So betting against a goal after 79 minutes could pay off at 5/6.
This International Friendly match between Slovakia and San Marino will be played on Jun 5, 2024 and kick off at 17:00. Check below for our tipsters best Slovakia vs San Marino prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
