Armenia – Cyprus

At least two goals expected in Yerevan

Two teams ranked between 101st and 200th in the FIFA rankings, neither of whom has ever taken part in a major tournament, meet in Yerevan. The Nations League is a genuinely important competition for Armenia and Cyprus, so there is little doubt that both will be focused on getting a result in the upcoming match. Adding to the tension is the fact that the teams are direct rivals in the race for promotion. Before their meeting in the fifth round, Cyprus are second with seven points, a position that carries a place in the play-offs for a spot in League B. Armenia are third, three points behind Cyprus. The teams first met in this Nations League campaign in early October in Nicosia. Cyprus established a 2:0 lead in the first half and held on to it until the final whistle, despite playing with ten men from the 52nd minute. Cyprus won one more match after that encounter. They hosted Latvia, who opened the scoring in the 57th minute but were unable even to hold on for a draw, losing 1:2. The winning goal in that match was scored in the 90+4th minute by Marcus Edwards, a Tottenham academy graduate who plays for Burnley. Armenia had such a poor World Cup qualifying campaign that the federation's leadership had to change the coaching staff. Yeghishe Melikyan, who had spent several years in charge of Pyunik, was appointed head coach in August. Besides losing away to Cyprus, Armenia were beaten by Montenegro, allowing them to score three goals in Yerevan. In their other matches, Armenia beat Latvia and drew with Montenegro. Indeed, the 0:0 draw in Podgorica was the only match involving Armenia in the current Nations League campaign in which fewer than two goals were scored. Armenia and Cyprus have met five times over the past twenty years. None of those matches featured fewer than two goals. The hosts will be without team leader Eduard Spertsyan, who sustained an injury while playing for Al-Ahli. This evens up the teams' chances, somewhat reducing Armenia's home advantage. The selection is over 1.5 goals.