San Marino with Malta and the loser of the play-off between Cyprus and Estonia
New edition, old story. In the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League group stage draws, San Marino was once again drawn into the grouping of three teams, notably Group D2. For the first time after the reformulation of the tournament model made for the previous edition, San Marino will have to deal with a team that will be relegated from League C: in this case, it will be one between Cyprus and Estonia. Two recent comparisons with the islanders, on the occasion of qualifying for EURO 2020, while to find precedents with the Baltic team we have to rewind the tape until the two-year period 2014-15, when the Titans tore a 0-0 home game. Fate wanted San Marino in Group D2 and it was clear to the second ball. With Latvia destined for the grouping made up of four teams (D1) only one between San Marino and Andorra – at that point unable to be matched – reached the biancogranata, third-last in the Nations League ranking ahead of the Titans and Pyreneans. For the Biancazzurri, immediately after entering Group D2, the awareness of meeting two teams belonging to the first draw bracket: in addition to one between Cyprus and Estonia, it will be received by the outcome of the relegation play-outs on 24 and 29 March next , there will be Malta. The first matches with points up for grabs will come with the national team coached by the Italian Devis Mangia: in the history of the two teams, in fact, only one precedent in an official friendly. It was the year 2012 and the day before Ferragosto were the Knights of San Giovanni to impose themselves with the result of 3-2: for San Marino Manuel Marani and Danilo Rinaldi scored. “Malta is a decipherable opponent, but clearly there can be in this draw” – comments the new coach of San Marino, Fabrizio Costantini. “Some players have recently been faced by the San Marino teams involved in the preliminaries of the European club competitions and I will immediately get to work to get to know our future opponents better who are going through a phase of development. Estonia and Cyprus represent a difficult but inevitable match: perhaps Cyprus has something more and we have dealt with it in recent years. Probably of the two, Estonia is the one slightly closer to us, but we are still talking about two teams coming from Nations League Group C and in this situation, who will be our opponent, will play the role of the favorite in the group ”. Group of three teams, therefore, which also affects the calendar of the Titans. In fact, if the international windows are known and blocked for some time, the two Nations League matches that Malta, San Marino and Estonia / Cyprus will play compared to the counterparts drawn in D1, will be occupied by international friendlies that will be organized in the coming months. The Nations League Group D2 matches, on the other hand, will take place in June and September 2022. The final schedule will be announced by UEFA tomorrow.
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