Preview: Montenegro vs Andorra - prediction, team news, lineups

Montenegro welcome Andorra to the Podgorica City Stadium on Friday evening for the first of two fixtures during this international break.

Hrabri Sokoli were narrowly edged by Croatia in their previous match, while Els Tricolors were convincingly beaten 4-0 by Finland.

Match preview

Despite winning their first two matches, Montenegro finished fourth in their World Cup qualification group, meaning their wait for a first ever appearance at the tournament finals will continue for at least another four years.

Losing five of their eight games, Mirko Vucinic's side concluded their qualification campaign seven points shy of a playoff position and finished their schedule by losing 3-2 at home to Croatia, even though they were two goals to the good after 20 minutes.

Hrabri Sokoli's biggest weakness has certainly been their defensive instability, keeping only one clean sheet in their previous 18 matches and conceding 34 goals over that span.

However, if there was a silver lining to Montenegro's mixed recent form, it would be that they have held their own at home, winning four of their previous seven matches at the Podgorica City Stadium and only tasting defeat to opposition of superior quality in the form of Czech Republic and Croatia.

Picking up only the singular point, Andorra finished rock bottom of their World Cup qualification group and much like Friday's opponents, are still waiting for their debut competition appearance.

Els Tricolors are currently winless in their previous 12 away games, most recently beating Liechtenstein in a 2022 UEFA Nations League fixture, and have won only three matches on their travels since forming as a footballing nation in 1994.

However, Andorra do remain under the management of former goalkeeper Koldo Alvarez, who is currently the longest serving boss in international football, coaching the nation since February 2010.

Although they have not won a match in any competition since October 2024, Alvarez's side will certainly be confident that they can end that streak within the next week as they face off against both Montenegro and San Marino during this break.

Montenegro form (all competitions):

Andorra form (all competitions):

Team News

Montenegro boast a handful of European top-flight players including the likes of Lazio's Adam Marusic, Trabzonspor's Stefan Savic and Juventus starlet Vasilije Adzic, who we all expect to start on Friday evening.

It is also extremely likely that one of their starting forwards will be captain and former Manchester City striker Stevan Jovetic, who made a 90th international appearance last time out against Croatia.

Andorra are likely to deploy a youthful side on Friday, having favoured the likes of Biel Borra Font, Ian Oliveira and Pau Babot in recent fixtures.

It remains to be seen who Alvarez opts for between the sticks, having utilised each of Iker Alvarez, Alex Ruiz and Xisco Pires in the side's previous three fixtures.

Montenegro possible starting lineup:

Nikic; Radunovic, Tuci, Savic, Marusic; Jankovic, Bulatovic, Adzic, Vukotic; Krstovic, Jovetic

Andorra possible starting lineup:

Alvarez; Borra Font, Llovera, Garcia, Oliveira, San Nicolas; Rodrigo Tapia, Vales, Babot, Cervos; Lopez

We say: Montenegro 2-0 Andorra

While both sides are on a bleek run of form, we think that Montenegro may have too much quality for Andorra to deal with.

Hrabri Sokoli will undoubtedly be disappointed at how their World Cup qualification campaign panned out and we are backing them to return to winning ways before facing Slovenia on Tuesday.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.