Having surprisingly topped Group E, Albania’s qualifying journey would suggest that they are a nation ready to compete and are growing in confidence since the appointment of Brazilian head coach Sylvinho.
Outside of an opening matchday defeat to Poland, Albania achieved an unbeaten qualifying campaign.
They beat recognised European regulars Poland and the Czech Republic to reach only their second major men’s tournament in the nation’s history.
In Albania, many have suggested this new crop of players have embodied the spirit of Shkodër, one of Europe and Albania’s oldest cities, associated with resilience and grit.
These qualities are something they must carry with them this summer in Germany, as their next challenge is considered to be even more insurmountable, having been drawn in the infamous ‘Group (B) of Death’ alongside Spain, Italy, and Croatia.
With minimal expectations heading into the tournament, Albania will relish the opportunity to display their attacking philosophy and tactical dynamism on Europe’s biggest stage, highlighting their South American influence across the coaching department.
Their ability to grind out results against stronger opponents was critical to their success throughout qualifying, but will they be able to emulate their tactical maturity against three sides their manager has stated will have aspirations of competing in the latter stages of the tournament?
This tactical analysis will begin to identify Albania’s play both in and out of possession, highlighting who we think could make the difference and execute Sylvinho’s tactics to shock the world.
Albania Starting XI
Since Sylvinho took over ahead of their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign, it is clear that the Brazilian has found success and familiarity in the 4-2-3-1 formation- attempting to utilise the profiles within his squad to have a balance between both attack and defence.
Albania will find comfort in the fact that their experienced number-one goalkeeper, Etrit Berisha, will be fit for selection, having missed their friendly matches in March.
Brentford’s Thomas Strakosha will act as a fine deputy on the bench.
The defensive line is comprised of a mix of European experience and a youthful spark, with Mario Mitaj, Berat Djimsiti, Enea Mihaj, and Elseid Hysaj aiming to recreate their defensive solidity.
The double-pivot partnership between Ylber Ramadani and Kristjan Asllani provides an important bridge between defence and attack, with differing roles allowing Albania to be both creative and protected against opposing threats.
Wingers Taulant Seferi and Jasir Asani will look to provide attacking flair out wide, with their expert movement and impressive ball-striking crucial to Albania’s success throughout the qualifying phase.
The dynamism of Nedim Bajrami will be highlighted in much more detail, but he stands out as the man to make Albania tick, cooperating nicely with striker Sokol Cikalleshi- the experienced forward looking to drop deeper to create space in the final third.
Albania certainly poses a threat from the bench, with Chelsea forward Armando Broja returning from injury to hopefully inject pace and power in the latter stages of the match.
Albania’s squad selection maintains an important balance between international experience and a youthful spark, something which has been crucial to Sylvinho’s success.
The likes of Hysaj and Djimsiti will be imperative for any instance of success, with their years of playing in the Serie A providing the opportunity to go head-to-head with some of Europe’s elite attacking players.
After being fully immersed in the Albanian culture since his appointment, the Brazilian has been able to form a well-knit collective through extensive scouting and analysis.
A vital example of this would be the ascension of Jasir Asani, highlighted for his performances in the K-League with Gwangju FC and quickly turning into one of Albania’s key attacking contributors.
Albania Attacking phase
Whilst Albania didn’t precisely set the qualifying stage alight when it came to attacking performances, they managed to produce moments of magic to propel themselves towards the Finals this summer.
Their ability to score 1.40 goals per game from 1.12 xG per 90 would suggest that they heavily benefitted from outrageous long-range finishing and the subsequent ability to hold a lead while remaining threatening on the counter.
In the initial phase of possession, Albania have modified their cautious approach from years gone by and now looks to commit bodies forward with the full-backs higher in the build-up.
Their traditional 4-2-3-1 can switch into the 2-2-2-4 due to the advancement of Mitaj and Hysaj, offering key passing outlets and crucially being within close distance of Asani and Seferi to produce nice interchanges and overload the wide areas.
In order to combat potential weakness in transition, we often see the more defensive-minded Ramadani dropping between the two central defenders, not only to add another player to maintain possession and find openings from deep but also to add another layer of protection in the deepest point of their rest defence.
A shift towards the 4-3-3 is equally as advantageous for Albania, with Ramadani often dropping into the single pivot with Bajrami and Asllani still staggered but much closer together as Albania’s two key ball progressors.
Albania’s most profitable attacking method comes from the wide areas but often revolves around their wingers inverting and attacking the space inside instead of looking to cross.
Albania only attempted 65 crosses throughout the Euro qualifying, ranked only 48th out of the 53 countries competing.
Instead, we see the movement and positioning of their full-backs creating issues for opposing defenders, as the Albanian wingers have more freedom to drift inside.
With the creative Bajrami wider in the 4-3-3, Albania’s wide overloads leave themselves with numerous players who can cause danger and command significant defensive attention, in turn creating space through the centre.
Albania Defensive phase
The gritty nature of this Albania squad has been commended by both coaches and fans.
Resilient performances against Poland and the Czech Republic were integral to their qualification, conceding only four goals across their eight matches.
Their system relies on a collective effort, effectively pressing in the first phase but then reverting to an impenetrable defensive shape that tires opponents.
Out of possession, Sylvinho has looked to press in the 4-4-2, with Bajrami often stepping up to accompany the lone striker.
When defending deeper, however, Albania look to switch into more of a 5-3-2 with one of their wingers joining the forward line and the other deeper acting as more of a wing-back, providing increased defensive strength but maintaining key attacking outlets in the event of a turnover.
To eliminate progression through the central areas, Albania looks to shepherd their opponents towards the flanks, where members of the solid midfield base can slide over to occupy space and continue the wide overloads that are so profitable for their own attacks.
Albania’s ability to remain defensively sound and withstand offensive onslaught will be crucial this summer, facing ball-dominant nations like Spain and Croatia, who boasted 67.6% and 62.50% average possession respectively throughout their qualifying journeys.
Towards the end of their crucial victories against opponents they perceived to be stronger than them, Sylvinho began to switch to a 4-1-4-1 when out of possession.
Something which was trialled at the start of his tenure as their starting shape has become one they turn to in the latter moments to swap their advanced playmaker role for a defensive anchor to sit in front of the back line.
Albania Transitions
The transitional phase is where you would expect Albania to be most dangerous when it comes to the group stage matches in June, with their aim to attack space when regaining the ball high up the pitch.
When looking at their defensive statistics from the qualifying stage, the pie chart would suggest that their ball recoveries are one of their strongest metrics, especially within the middle third of the pitch.
Pressing out of the 4-4-2, Albania have shown to be successful in stepping up and intercepting the ball once their forward line is bypassed.
Even though he may not be entrusted with the starting berth, having missed the majority of Euro qualifying, the youthful presence of Armando Broja will certainly be leaned upon in transition.
The Chelsea striker will play an important role as the rapid outlet who can get on the end of long balls hit forward to relieve pressure in their final third.
As they would certainly expect to be on the back foot for the majority of their group-stage matches, an injection of life that Broja will bring can offer a varied attacking threat compared to expected starter Cikalleshi.
Albania Forwards
When it comes to the forward line, Albania were not exactly free-scoring throughout qualifying.
But in only their second-ever major tournament, the Albanian wingers will relish the opportunity to recreate some of the Puskas-worthy strikes we witnessed throughout 2023.
The experienced figure of Sokol Cikalleshi will be crucial in guiding the youthful attack through the physically and mentally challenging Group B, where attacking opportunities will be few and far between.
Their main threat is on the counter, where the deeper positioning of Cikalleshi aims to draw in defenders and create space in behind for the likes of Asani and Seferi.
Albania Midfielders
The Albanian midfield stands out as one of their most prized assets, with the combination of Asllani and Ramadani being ever-present throughout their qualifying run.
Add Nedim Bajrami into the equation, and Albania will possess a healthy mix of important profiles, with the ability to break between the lines and distribute play nicely towards their key attacking threats.
Despite only playing a cameo role in Inter’s Scudetto triumph, Asllani’s excellent distribution provided cause for future excitement, recording 5.30 passes into the final third per 90 and incredible accuracy for every range of passes.
With a much more prominent role within the national setup, it will be interesting to see how these figures translate to a vital summer tournament for Albania.
Albania Defenders
After a historic Italian influence on the Albanian national team, it is no surprise that some of Albania’s critical defensive personnel come from the likes of Lazio and Atalanta.
Berat Djimsiti will be the crucial piece in the interior after an impressive Serie A and Europa League season, ranking in the 91st and 92nd percentile for interceptions and blocks, accompanied by 2.87 aerial duels won per 90.
On the right flank, Elseid Hysaj is someone Albania can depend upon in every phase of play.
His ball retention qualities are incredibly important when building rare periods of possession, along with the attacking movement to directly and indirectly impact play within the final third.
Albania Key player
When tasked with selecting Albania’s key player for Euro 2024, Sassuolo midfielder Nedim Bajrami stands out as a dynamic playmaker who is a livewire across the field.
This comes from the positional freedom that Sylvinho bestows upon him, often starting in the number 10 role before drifting between the lines and into either half-spaces to support Albania’s wing play.
Against the Faroe Islands, Bajrami highlighted his ability to run beyond the striker and break into the penalty area, latching on to Asani’s through ball before striking across the goalkeeper and opening the scoring.
However, his ability to manipulate opposing defences with his expert movement dropping deeper into midfield may be even more impressive and important for the upcoming tournament.
In what was a must-win match at home to the Czech Republic, Bajrami’s run into his own half sucked in numerous Czech defenders before executing a perfectly timed switch across to Hysaj on the right flank.
With the Czech team unable to react quickly enough and get across, Albania were able to launch an impactful counterattack and make use of the numerical advantage in order to double their advantage.
The moments of innovation and excitement that Bajrami brings to this Albania team will be crucial to potentially unlocking stern defensive opposition and finding an edge against some of the world’s best footballing nation.
Albania Tournament prediction
After topping Group E in qualifying, it would be fair to assume that Albania will probably find themselves at the opposite end of the table when it comes to tackling this tournament’s ‘Group of Death’.
Being realistic about their chances of toppling footballing giants, Sylvinho will still expect to see a display of fighting spirit with the opportunity to maybe catch someone off guard should they underestimate the quality of the Balkan side.
Whatever their finishing position this summer, their rapid growth has meant this tournament acts as a significant platform to build upon ahead of hopefully reaching their first-ever World Cup finals in 2026.
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