Qualifiers for the 2024 European Championship start again this week. In almost every group, the numbers 1 and 2 play a duel. So too the Belgian team, which plays Austria on Friday. So it promises to be an interesting week, with some top matches.
Group A
In Group A, we get an interesting duel between the two leaders in the group. Scotland, who could win everything so far, must try to keep up that momentum in Spain. But the top Iberian country will also do everything in its power to get closer to the lead. Their match will take place on Thursday, October 12.
Cyprus must face Norway that same Thursday. The Mediterranean country has no points yet, and against the Scandinavian country it will not be easy either. Georgia will not play a qualifying match this week, but will play against Thailand on Thursday.
Group B
France, who have already won every match, will play against the Netherlands on Friday 13 October. This is another match between the No 1 and No 2 in the group. The French team has yet to suffer a defeat, with the Netherlands losing 4-0 in the previous match against France. Also, the Netherlands played a match less than France, so they cannot overtake them right away either.
The Netherlands is currently on the same level as Greece, though. Both countries have 9 points, but the Netherlands played a match less. Greece take on Ireland this week, which is just ahead of Gibraltar with 3 points.
Group C
In this group, the leaders do not have to play this week; England awaits their turn. Italy, the number 2, plays against Malta. That island nation has not been able to take a point yet, and against a top country like Italy it will be a very difficult task.
Ukraine and North Macedonia fight their duel on Saturday. The countries are in 3rd and 4th place with as many points as Italy. They all have 7 points.
Group D
Croatia and Turkey are currently in shared first place, with both having 10 points. So their duel will decide who will be in the lead for next week. The loser could end up on the same level as Armenia if they win against Latvia. Wales sits out this matchday.
Group E
Poland have yet to try to pull themselves out of a predicament, with barely six points after five matches. If they do not suffer a defeat against the Faroe Islands, who are now in last place, they could still move up a place or two. But if the Czech Republic wins against leader Albania, Poland could only move up a maximum of one place. Moldova sits out this matchday.
Group F
Belgium plays an important match against Austria on Friday 13 October. So in this group, too, it will be a duel between the leaders. Sweden, who are not doing as well as expected with only six points after five matches, are chasing in third place and have no chance of picking up points this week. The last two in this group, Azerbaijan and Estonia, both still have only 1 point and will play for the three points on Friday.
Group G
Hungary and Serbia are in shared first place with 10 points, closely followed by Montenegro. So the winner of their duel will already be able to take a bigger lead. Montenegro is in 3rd place with 8 points, but will also not get a chance to score points this week. Not that it is so bad, as Bulgaria and Lithuania both still have only 2 points. They play each other on Saturday.
Group H
This is also one of the few groups where the number 1 and 2 do not play each other this week. Slovenia, the number 1 with 13 points, will face Finland, the number 3. The winner of this duel will take the lead in this group, unless Denmark puts another stop to that. The Danish team plays on Saturday against Kazakhstan, which, like Finland, has 12 points. Northern Ireland and San Marino, the last two teams in this group, play each other on Saturday. They have 3 and 0 points respectively.
Group I
Switzerland would normally play Israel, but that match was postponed to a time yet to be determined. This is because of the attacks by Palestinian Hamas, making playing in Israel considered too dangerous.
The other countries will definitely be in action this week, with Romania visiting Belarus and Kosovo playing Andorra. Romania is currently in 2nd place, while the other three countries are in the last places.
Group J
In this group, Portugal not too surprisingly remain on top. With 18 points after 6 games, they are playing a perfect course. They play this week against Slovakia, who are at No 2 with 13 points. Luxembourg also still has a chance if they can win against Iceland, they are at No 3 with 10 points. For the following countries it will be a bit more difficult: Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iceland both have 6 points, Liechtenstein has not been able to pick up any points yet.
