Our prediction for this Euro 2024 match:
Kazakhstan will look to stay in the race for a top-two finish in Group H when they welcome San Marino to their Astana Arena on Friday afternoon. The Kazakhs face a must-win situation and we are positive that they will go all-out attack in the penultimate group game. A man to keep an eye on in the home team will be Besiktas midfielder Bakhtiyor Zaynutdinov, who scored a brace in a come-from behind win over Finland in Helsinki.
The minnows, on the other hand, have been serving as a cannon fodder for their rivals in Group H and given their poor goal difference of 1-26, anything but a routine home win would be a big surprise. In each of their previous three meetings in a competitive match Kazakhstan defeated San Marino. As for the away team, both Battistini and Capicchioni are pushing for recalls to the starting XI after the duo came off the bench in a 2-1 loss to Denmark.
Highlighted Team (Kazakhstan):
Kazakhstan national team played their first international match on June 1, 1992 against Turkmenistan, with the team beating the Emeralds 1-0. The former Soviet republic have been competing on the international stage since 1991, when the country declared independence.
Kazakhstan have yet to book their place at major tournaments, but they have not been serving as a cannon fodder for top European national teams. The Kazakhs were part of Asian Football Confederation before joining UEFA in 2002. However, they could not enter UEFA Euro 2004 qualification as the draw had been made earlier. Kazakhstan national football team recorded their biggest win over Pakistan in June, 1997 and they suffered their biggest defeat in 2005, with the team losing to Turkey 6-0.
Kazakhstan wear sky-blue shirts and sky-blue shorts when playing at home, while their away colour is yellow. Astana Arena is considered Kazakhstan national football team’s home ground and the capacity of the stadium is 30.244. The venue was opened in July, 2009.