2026-2027 Nations League: Albania vs. Belarus, Probable Lineups
Coming off five straight losses in its last five matches, Albania is looking to put an end to one of its least successful stretches in recent years in the Nations League match at 8:45 p.m., part of Group 1 of League C. They face Belarus, which, by contrast, recorded six consecutive positive results between November 2025 and last June.
Albania had also managed to qualify for the UEFA playoffs, which offered the final four spots for the 2026 World Cup: against Poland, however, the Eagles fell short in the semifinal of their group, as Poland—led by Lewandowski and Zielinski—came back from Hoxha’s opening goal. The new coaching role has been entrusted to Rolando Maran: the former coach of Vicenza, Catania, Cagliari, and Brescia, among others, has the task of leading the Albanian national team to the second tier of the Nations League.
As for Belarus, the goal is also to make the most of every opportunity and try to advance to League B. So far in 2026, they have remained undefeated: a 1-0 win in Cyprus on March 26 and a 2-1 victory in Armenia three days later, followed by a 4-1 home win over Syria on June 5 and a 2-2 draw, also at home, on the 9th of the same month. Among the players to watch is forward Trofim Melnichenko, born in 2006, who plays for Porto’s reserve team.
Probable lineups
ALBANIA (4-4-2): Berisha; Hysaj, Djimsiti, Kumbulla, Mitaj; Mehmeti, Ramadani, Asllani, Hoxha; Manaj, Shpendi. Head Coach: Maran.
BELARUS (4-2-3-1): Pavlyuchenko; Shevchenko, Volkov, Begunov, Malkevich; Yablonsky, Bocherov; Shumansky, Ebong, Kontsevoy; Melnichenko. Head Coach: Goncharenko.
