Raphael Durand
Dailysports's expert
One of the second-round matches of the UEFA European U-17 Championship group stage will take place at the Elbasani Arena, where Albania will face Germany. I’m offering a tip on the outcome of this clash with an appealing odds value.
Match preview
Recently, Albania U-17 have shown mixed results. In friendlies, the Albanians managed to defeat Poland at home 3-2 and Azerbaijan away 4-1. However, there were also outright failures, such as a 0-4 loss to Poland and a 1-2 home defeat to Wales.
In the opening round of the tournament, Albania failed to impress against one of the favorites, Portugal. Andrea Tedesco’s side held out during the first half, but still conceded late on. After the break, they completely fell apart, ultimately losing 0-4.
Germany, meanwhile, entered the tournament on the back of a three-game unbeaten run. After a 2-2 home draw with Austria, Die Mannschaft went on to beat Spain away 3-2 and then thrashed Norway 4-1.
That made their heavy 0-3 defeat to France in their Euro 2025 opener all the more surprising. Things went wrong for the Germans from the very first minute, conceding an early goal, and by the 12th minute they were trailing 0-2. To make matters worse, Die Mannschaft were reduced to ten men on 31 minutes, leaving them with no real chance of a comeback.
Probable lineups
- Albania U-17: Huli R., Kurti D., Suleimani L., Nuhaj F., Geçaj K., Ferati D., Ljana A., Gjoka E., Ramku A., Kulla G., Vukai A.
- Germany U-17: Trippel M., Abraha N., Fard E., Pavlic R., Turay O., Kaba M., Göttlicher M., Isbruch L., Karl L., Mule S., Staff A.
Match facts and head-to-head
- The only previous meeting was in October 2011, when Germany won 1-0
- The "Over 2.5 goals" bet has landed in each of Albania’s last five matches
- The "Over 2.5 goals" bet has won in four of Germany’s last five games
Prediction
The bookmakers favor the German side, but to be honest, neither team impressed in the opening round. Given the stats from recent matches, we recommend backing "Over 2.5 goals" in this one.
