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Hungary host Poland on Thursday in the first match of their 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign.
Both Hungary and Poland have already booked their places in the European Championships taking place this year. They will be hoping that these qualifiers can serve as a good warm-up for the tournament beginning in June.
Both sides will know that they are essentially vying for second place as they share a group with football giants England.
Marco Rossi will take over a Hungary squad that went on an incredible six-game unbeaten run in the UEFA Nations League to end 2020. They have become a very tough team to beat, with the Magyarok conceding only three goals in their last six games.
Poland, on the other hand, ended 2020 with back-to-back losses against Italy and the Netherlands. This prompted the Polish FA to appoint Paulo Sousa as their new manager.
The former Boudeaux boss will hope to get his side firing on all cylinders as they get closer to the Euros in the summer.
The two sides will want to kick off their qualifying campaigns on the right note, and that is sure to make this a hotly-contested encounter.
Hungary vs Poland Head-to-Head
Poland have a slight edge over Hungary based on the recent head-to-head meetings between the two sides, with two wins to Hungary's one.
Poland did win 2-1 the last time they faced Hungary, but that was back in 2011.
Hungary Form Guide: W-D-W-D-W
Poland Form Guide: D-W-W-L-L
Hungary vs Poland Team News
Hungary
Marco Rossi will be without star midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai, as the RB Leipzig man continues to recover from a groin injury he picked up in January. His teammate Peter Gulacsi, however, is likely to start on Thursday.
Apart from Szoboszlai, the Italian will have a full-strength side to choose from.
Injured: Dominik Szoboszlai
Suspended: None
Unavailable: None
Poland
Paulo Sousa will be able to count on the talents and finishing of Robert Lewandowski. Reports suggested that the striker would be blocked by Bayern Munich from participating in the qualifiers due to COVID-19 restrictions. However, the German giants have decided to release him for the qualifiers.
Strikers Arkadiusz Milik and Krzysztof Piatek have joined the national team after their clubs agreed to release them for the international break.
Leeds United midfielder Mateusz Klich is likely to start against Hungary, while Juventus' Wojciech Szczesny will be in goal.
Crotone defender Arkiadusz Reca makes the squad but may be unlikely to feature after picking up an infection. Dynamo Kyiv defender Tomasz Kedziora will miss out on this round of fixtures.
Injured: None
Suspended: None
Unavailable: Tomasz Kedziora
Hungary vs Poland Predicted XI
Hungary Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Peter Gulacsi; Attila Fiola, Willi Orban, Adam Lang, Endre Botka; Adam Nagy, David Siger; Filip Holender, Zsolt Kalmar, Loic Negy; Nemanja Nikolic
Poland Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Wojciech Szczesny; Maciej Rybus, Jan Bednarek, Kamil Glik, Bartosz Bereszynski; Grzegorz Krychowiak, Mateusz Klich; Kamil Grosicki, Piotr Zielinski, Przemyslaw Placheta; Robert Lewandowski
Hungary vs Poland Prediction
Hungary have been in better form of late but Poland have their talisman Robert Lewandowski up front. His presence as a target man gives the Polish an advantage.
We expect Poland to edge past Hungary.
Prediction: Hungary 0-1 Poland
