Albania v Ukraine: Prediction, Tips and Odds

There is still plenty to play for heading into the final round of Group B1 fixtures in the UEFA Nations League, with Tuesday's clash between Albania and Ukraine set to be a nerve-jangling contest.

Albania sit third in the group on seven points, two points clear of Ukraine, behind second-placed Georgia on goal difference and just one point adrift of leaders the Czech Republic.

The Red and Blacks can still finish in all four positions in the group, while the Blue and Yellow can't end up top but could still finish second, third or fourth.

Given all the permutations heading into the last round of fixtures, both of these sides will be hoping to grab the victory that would give them the best chance of earning promotion.

Albania v Ukraine betting tips and predictions

Albania to win - 2/1

Albania opened their Nations League campaign with a 2-1 victory over Ukraine in Prague before then suffering defeats to Georgia and the Czech Republic, failing to score in both of those losses.

The Red and Blacks responded with a 1-0 success in Georgia and a 0-0 home draw against the Czechs last time out, leaving them right in the mix to earn promotion from Group B1.

After suffering defeats to Albania and the Czech Republic in their first two matches, Ukraine have embarked on a three-game unbeaten run that has kept them in the hunt for second place.

But the Blue and Yellow have been restricted to draws in their last two outings and they appear to be missing that extra bit of quality in the final third, which is strange given they have Artem Dovbyk and Mykhailo Mudryk to call upon.

Ukraine, unable to finish top of the group, have failed to win their two away Nations League fixtures, going down 3-2 in the Czech Republic and drawing 1-1 against Georgia.

With the visitors off the boil, this looks like a prime opportunity for Albania to grab the victory that would guarantee a top-two finish and potentially see them end up in first, should the Czech Republic and Georgia draw.

Sylvinho's side have collected just one point from the six on offer at home, narrowly losing 1-0 to Georgia before then holding the Czechs last time out, but they will make this a scrappy affair on Tuesday and their determined approach could pay off.

Mykola Shaparenko to be booked - 15/8

Just two yellow cards were shown in September's reverse fixture in Prague, both for Albania, but the enormity of this contest should see a more tough-tackling contest at Arena Kombetare in Tirana.

With tension and nerves likely in both sides, neither team will be wanting to give anything away and there could be plenty of tackles flying in across the course of the match.

One player who may fall foul of the referee is Ukraine midfielder Shaparenko, who has picked up a yellow card in the group and committed a leading eight fouls for his country.

The 26-year-old has been in the thick of the action for his club, Dynamo Kyiv, with two cautions received in his last four appearances.

Shaparenko was booked last time out against Georgia and it would be no surprise to see him have his name taken for the second game in a row.

Under 8 total corners - 6/4

Neither of these sides have been big on corners in the group, with Albania taking a miserly 13 and Ukraine being awarded 27, and a low corner count could be on the cards here.

The Blue and Yellow and averaging 5.4 corners per match, with the Red and Blacks down at 2.6, and the pair didn't get many opportunities to deliver from this set-piece situation last time out.

Albania had just two corners in the draw against the Czech Republic, in a match that had just eight in total, while Ukraine had just four against Georgia.

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Albania v Ukraine odds

Albania - 2/1
Draw - 11/5
Ukraine - 11/8

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.