Ladies and gentlemen, the time has come - UEFA Euro 2024 is upon us. The very best nations from across the continent of Europe will compete with one another for the right to be called champions. There are some great teams who are ready to lay it all on the line in the name of greatness, and we can’t wait to see it. Today, we’ll be taking a look at the upcoming clash between Croatia and Albania.

They may have only made it to the round of 16 at Euro 2021, but on the biggest stage of them all, Croatia have proven themselves to be the ultimate dark horse. They have finished in 2nd place and 3rd place at the last two World Cups and although it must be said that they have an ageing squad, we still think they’ve got enough gas left in the tank for one more big run.

Croatia just were not able to get going in their clash with Spain to open up the tournament. They had a lot of the ball but just couldn’t do anything with it, and at the back, they couldn’t handle the quality of their opponents, leading them down the path of a really disappointing 3-0 defeat.

Albania haven’t always been looked upon as a team that’s a constant threat in qualification, and rightly so, given that their only major accomplishment came in 2016 when they made it to the Euros for the first time. However, they’re a fun team to watch, and things finally appear to be clicking into place across the pitch - and that has to be cause for excitement.

Albania stunned many by scoring the quickest goal in Euros history against Italy to take a 1-0 lead in their first group game. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to hold on and eventually lost 2-1, but they put in the kind of performance that should give them real hope.

This feels like it’s going to be a pretty competitive game, despite what some pundits may suggest. It’s going to be a nervy affair at times and we don’t expect there to be too many goals, but when push comes to shove, we do feel as if the end result will be a narrow Croatia win.