Slovakia Under-19s and Austria Under-19s will lock horns in Trnava on Tuesday evening, with the winner securing their spot in the finals of the 2023 Under-20 World Cup.
The hosts finished third in Group A of the 2022 Under-19 European Championship, while Austria Under-19s were third in Group B, one point behind second-placed Israel Under-19s.
Match preview
Slovakia Under-19s opened their 2022 Under-19 European Championship campaign with a 5-0 loss to France Under-19s on June 18 before suffering a 1-0 defeat to Italy Under-19s three days later, which left them bottom of the section and facing a battle to even finish third.
The host nation managed to record a 1-0 victory over Romania Under-19s on Friday, though, with Adam Griger coming up with the winning goal in the 95th minute, which saw them claim third spot in Group A and a spot in the 2023 Under-20 World Cup playoff affair.
Slovakia Under-19s have played five times in 2022, boasting a record of two wins, two defeats and one draw, and they will have taken a lot of positives from their success over Romania Under-19s last time out.
Albert Rusnak's side are now just one match away from securing their spot in the finals of next year's Under-20 World Cup, and they will be coming up against a side that also picked up three points from their three matches in the group stage of the 2022 Under-19 European Championship.
Austria Under-19s were on the end of a 2-0 loss to England Under-19s in their tournament opener on June 19 before going down 4-2 to Israel Under-19s three days later.
Martin Scherb's side managed to triumph in their final group game on Saturday, running out 3-2 winners over Serbia Under-19s, with Leopold Querfield netting twice, while Lukas Wallner was also on the scoresheet.
Austria Under-19s will be coming up against a side that only managed one goal in their three group matches at this summer's tournament, and they netted five times themselves, so the away side should be confident heading into Tuesday's affair.
The visitors have not actually qualified for an Under-20 World Cup since 2015, when they reached the round of 16, while their best performance in the competition came back in 2007, finishing fourth in Canada.
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Team News
Slovakia Under-19s have reported no injury concerns from their win over Romania Under-19s on Friday, so it would not be a surprise to see the same XI for this match.
Timotej Jambor is the leading goalscorer in the squad with six, and the 19-year-old should again lead the line.
Griger came off the bench to score the winner against Romania Under-19s, but he might have to accept a spot on the bench once again, with Adam Gazi and Vitor Sliacky likely to keep their spots.
As for the visitors, head coach Scherb is unlikely to make many changes to the side that took to the field for the victory over Serbia Under-19s last time out.
Yusuf Demir, who represented Barcelona in the first half of the 2021-22 campaign, should again feature down the right, with Querfeld and Wallner - the goalscorers from the clash with Serbia Under-19s - continuing at the back.
There could be a change at centre-forward, though, with Dominik Weixelbraun pushing to replace Jakob Knollmuller, who was taken off in the 56th minute last time out.
Slovakia Under-19s possible starting lineup:
Hrdina; Micuda, Kosa, Uljaky, Kopasek; Holly, Oravec, Halabrin; Gazi, Jambor, Sliacky
Austria Under-19s possible starting lineup:
Scherf; Ivkic, Querfeld, Wallner, Omoregie; Omic, Kanuric; Demir, Jasic, Veratschnig; Weixelbraun
We say: Slovakia Under-19s 1-2 Austria Under-19s
Both sides will be confident following their victories last time out, and we are expecting a close match on Tuesday night. Austria Under-19s will feel that they have the superior quality, though, and we believe that the visitors will shade the match to book their spot at the Under-20 World Cup.
Matt Law
