Kazakhstan take on the visitors Norway in the round 1 match of UEFA Nations League group stage. The match will be played on Friday, September 6th at Almaty Central Stadium (Almaty).
Kazakhstan made the decision to switch from Asian football to European competition. At the club level, particularly with the success of "Astana," this move paid off with some notable achievements. However, the national team transitioned from being a solid middle-tier team in the East to a challenging, but still bottom-tier side in the West. It was only in the Nations League that Kazakhstan immediately showed they weren't just underdogs, rising from Division D. The real breakthrough came under coach Adiev. He led the team to victory in their group in Division C of the Nations League two years ago. In the Euro qualifiers, Kazakhstan secured six wins but ultimately didn’t qualify directly for the tournament. In the playoffs this March, their dream was crushed with a 0-5 loss to Greece. Adiev, already coaching "Anzhi," tried to juggle both roles but left the national team for good in late spring. His replacement, Stanislav Cherchesov, reportedly on a huge salary, managed to lose friendly matches to Armenia and Azerbaijan in June and even had a heated exchange with a journalist during a press conference.
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Norway hopes their stars will finally shine at this level. The "Drills" remain one of the biggest disappointments in this format. At the end of the last century, a much less talented generation, featuring players like Flo and Riise, managed to compete at both the World Cup (reaching the knockout stage in 1998) and the Euros. Now, Norway boasts not only Ødegaard and Haaland, who grab the headlines, but also players like Sevilla goalkeeper Nyland, defenders Ajer, Ryerson, Hanche-Olsen, and Ostigard, midfielders Bobb (who is injured), Berge, Thorsby, and Normann, and forwards Larsen and Sørloth — all representing top-division clubs. Despite this talent, they only collected 11 points in 8 qualifying matches last year, 6 fewer than Scotland. And in 2024, the team has won just one friendly out of four, with two losses.
This will be Norway's first-ever visit to Almaty. The Scandinavians are considered the favorites, but it seems they might be overrated once again. Kazakhstan is strong at home, so a bet on the hosts with a "+1.5 goals" handicap looks promising.
Prediction for the match: Kazakhstan to win with +1.5 handicap.
