On Friday evening, Lithuania host Kazakhstan in Group C4 of the Nations League, as the pair look to kick-off their campaign with a victory.
The home team’s recent international form has been poor of late, as Lithuania have won just once in their last 20 matches, having suffered 16 defeats in the process. The solitary victory came in a 1-0 win over New Zealand in their last outing, which was back in November 2019.
The New Zealand game also brought a rare clean sheet for Lithuania, who had conceded at least two goals in their previous six matches. They have now kept just two clean sheets in their last 20 international games.
Lithuania endured a difficult maiden Nations League campaign suffering six straight defeats while conceding at least two goals in five of their six outings in the competition. They have also conceded at least twice in two of their three home games in the Nations League.
Like the hosts, Kazakhstan have a poor recent international record, as the visitors have won just once in their last six outings, suffering four defeats in the process.
The biggest factor in those recent defeats has been poor defensive displays, with the visitors conceding at least twice in three of their previous four international games.
The visitors finished second from bottom in their Euro 2021 qualifying group, although picking up ten points from the group stage may be considered progress.
They enjoyed mixed fortunes in the last Nations League campaign, as they recorded just one win in six games, while also picking up three draws in a group including Georgia, Latvia and Andorra. Kazakhstan failed to win any of their three away games in the last edition of the Nations League.
Forebet predicts an away win in a low-scoring game, which would be a promising start to the visitor's campaign.