Preview: Georgia vs Ukraine – prediction, team news, lineups

As closely contested League B group 1 nearing its end, promotion and relegation rivals Georgia and Ukraine meet in Batumi on Saturday evening.

Over the next few days, either side could step up to UEFA Nations League‘s top tier or drop down to League C after they experienced contrasting fortunes last month.

Match preview

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After taking the backdoor Nations League route to Euro 2024 – where they excitingly progressed to the knockout stage – Georgia returned to the competition with back-to-back wins in September.

Willy Sagnols side put four past the Czech Republic and then Albania to establish a three-point lead at the top of the Group 1 and put themselves in pole position to claim an unprecedented place in Liga A.

However, two defeats last month halted their progress, leaving them behind the Czechs and level with Albania on six points heading into the final two rounds.

Despite a fearsome onslaught of Euros stars Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and George Mikautadzefailed to score twice in October, suffering back-to-back 1-0 defeats – the first coming against Ukraine.

As a result, the Crusaders will be keen to strengthen their hand by beating their Ukrainian counterparts in Batumi, which would also eliminate the visitors from contention.

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While neither Georgia nor Albania’s fate can be finally decided before TuesdayUkraine will surely be out of the race for promotion if they lose this weekend.

In fact, they would be automatically relegated with one game to go should Albania also defeat the Czech Republic, so claiming a draw will be their minimum target.

Serhiy Rebrovs side started their latest Nations League campaign slowly, suffering two defeats in September, but they returned to winning ways last month with a first-half strike from Mykhaylo Mudryk to see them past Georgia.

Three days later, Artem Dovbyk‘s penalty salvaged a point against the Czechs, and while Ukraine remain bottom of the table, they have now built some momentum and are just one win behind the leaders.

Completing the turnaround and claiming the top spot would ensure automatic promotion, while second place earns a play-off; third would result in a relegation decision against a Liga C team, while finishing fourth would mean clear relegation.

Georgia Nations League form:

Georgia form (all competitions):

Ukraine’s Nations League form:

Ukraine form (all competitions):

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Georgia coach Willy Sagnol – who recently signed a contract extension until 2028 – has named a familiar squad for this month’s Nations League clash, including star names such as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and the Liverpool-bound goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Joint top scorer at Euro 2024, Georges Mikautadze will aim to add to his tally of 14 goals from 33 caps, having struck twice in Group 1 so far.

Empoli defends Saba Goglichidze is the hosts’ most notable absence, having picked up an injury in the Serie A side’s clash with Lecce last week; Alexander Kalandze of Dinamo Tbilisi has been called up as cover.

Meanwhile, Ukraine will be without the Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin again as a family matter has seen him exempted from national duty – he missed last month due to illness.

Serhiy Rebrov generally prefers Benfica’s Anatoly Trubin anyway, although the loss of the Girona winger Viktor Tsygankov will have more influence.

The latter’s absence then Vitaliy Buyalskyi called into the squad late, but the Dynamo Kyiv midfielder subsequently withdrew due to a muscle problem. Buyalskyi’s clubmates Andriy Yarmolenko and Oleksandr Pikhalyonok is also sidelined.

Despite the chaos that has engulfed Roma since his arrival this summer, last season’s La Liga The Pichichi Award Winner Artem Dovbyk has scored seven goals for club and country this season and will lead the way.

Georgia possible starting line-up:
Mamardashvili; Gvelesiani, Kashia, Dvali; Kakabadze, Kochorashvili, Kiteischvili, Chakvetadze, Lochoshvili; Mikautadze, Kvaratskhelia

Ukraine’s possible starting line-up:
Trubin; Konoplya, Zabarnyi, Talovyerov, Matviyenko; Brazhko; Hutsulyak, Shaparenko, Sudakov, Mudryk; Dovbyk

We say: Georgia 2-1 Ukraine

Two well-matched teams could be separated by one goal again, but home advantage should help Georgia over the line to victory and knock Ukraine out of the promotion race.

The hosts may have an aging defence, but Willy Sagnol has built them into a solid side and their ability to counter-attack is renowned.

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

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