Serbia will begin their World Cup campaign against Brazil on November 24 before taking on Cameroon and Switzerland on November 28 and December 2 respectively in their remaining two Group G fixtures.
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Serbia will round off their preparations for the upcoming World Cup in Qatar with a friendly against Bahrain at Al Muharraq Stadium on Friday. The Eagles will begin their World Cup campaign against Brazil on November 24 before taking on Cameroon and Switzerland on November 28 and December 2 respectively in their remaining two Group G fixtures. Bahrain, meanwhile, have not qualified for the tournament as they finished third in Group C of the second round of AFC qualifiers. The hosts are heading into the match on the back of a 2-2 draw against Canada in a friendly on Friday, while Serbia were last in action in September, having defeated Norway 2-0 in a Nations League match.
⏳ Недељу дана… ⚔️#FIFAWorldCup #Qatar2022 pic.twitter.com/HFZt0e55xB
— Fudbalski savez Srbije | FA of Serbia (@FSSrbije) November 17, 2022
Bahrain managed to share the spoils against World Cup bound side Canada on Friday. The North American outfit took an early lead through Kone’s 6th-minute strike, before Mahdi Al-Humaidan leveled the score eight minutes later. And then, five minutes after the hour-mark, Abdulla Yusuf Helal converted a spot kick to put Asian outfit ahead. Nine minutes from time, Ali Haram’s own goal made the score 2-2. After Friday’s friendly match, the Reds will take part in the Gulf Cup in January before the AFC Asian Cup in five months.
Serbia, on the other hand, are preparing for their third World Cup appearance, having made their debut in 2010. The Eagles had an impressive UEFA qualifying campaign, having finished at the top of Group A, ahead of Portugal, to earn an automatic spot in the finals of the tournament. In their final qualifying game against Portugal, Serbia dished out a 2-1 win at Estadio Da Luz thanks to a 90th-minute winner from Aleksandar Mitrovic. After that, Dragon Stojkovic’s side continued their impressive form into the Nations League, recording four wins from six games to secure top spot in League B Group 4. Last time out, the Eagles put two goals past Norway in the final round of Nations League group stage fixtures. Dusan Vlahovic opened the scoring before Mitrovoc doubled the lead to seal the win.
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Bahrain boss Helio Sousa is unlikely to make too many changes to the side that started in the 2-2 draw against Canada on Friday. Yusuf is likely to lead the line with Al-Humaidan and Marhoon in support. Al Aswad, Al Shaikh and Ali could form the midfield trio. As for Serbia, Mitrovic is still recovering from an injury, therefore Juventus-man Vlahovic is expected to partner Jovic up front. Dusan Tadic could be deployed behind the strikers, with Filip Kostic, Milinkovic-Savic and Lukic occupying the engine room.
Bahrain probable starting lineup: Lutfalla, Hasan, Benaddi, Al Hayam, Saeed, Al Aswad, Al Shaikh, ali, Al-Humaidan, Yusuf, Marhoon
Serbia probable starting lineup: Rajkovic, Veljkovic, S Mitrovic, Pavlovic, Zivkovic, Milinkovic-Savic, Lukic, Kostic, Tadic, Jovic, Vlahovic
Bahrain
| Opponents | Score |
| Canada | 2-2 (D) |
| Panama | 0-2 (L) |
| Cape Verde | 0-0 (D) |
| Turkmenistan | 1-0 (W) |
| Malaysia | 1-2 (W) |
Serbia
| Opponents | Score |
| Norway | 0-2 (W) |
| Sweden | 4-1 (W) |
| Slovenia | 2-2 (D) |
| Sweden | 0-1 (W) |
| Slovenia | 4-1 (W) |
The international friendly match between Bahrain and Serbia will take place at Al Muharraq Stadium on Friday at 9:00 pm IST.
| Bahrain vs Serbia | Key details |
| Date | November 18 |
| Venue | Al Muharraq Stadium |
| Kickoff time in Bahrain | 6:30 pm |
| Kickoff time in Serbia | 4:30 pm |
For the Football fans in Bahrain, live telecast of the match will be available on Bahrain Sport 1. Meanwhile, those in Serbia can catch the live action via Sportklub 1 Serbia and Nova Serbia..
