Slovakia vs. Sweden | UEFA Nations League | Pre Match

Tied atop League C Group 1, Slovakia and Sweden will continue their battle for automatic promotion in the UEFA Nations League on Friday night, when they lock horns in Bratislava.

Both teams won their first two matches last month, so a straight fight to finish first could take place between now and November.

As the new Nations League campaign kicked off in early September, Slovakia returned to action for the first time since dramatically bowing out of Euro 2024, where they lost to eventual finalists England in the last 16.

En route to the knockout phase, the Falcons had beaten Belgium and drawn with Romania, so they still took some positive momentum into last month's games against more modest opposition.

Their quest to earn promotion to League B started with a hard-fought victory over Estonia in Tallinn, with Hellas Verona forward Tomas Suslov scoring the game's only goal during the second half.

That was swiftly followed by a 2-0 defeat of Azerbaijan in Kosice, where another Verona player, Ondrej Duda, converted a penalty before David Strelec effectively wrapped up the points with Slovakia's second.

Having failed to mount a serious challenge for a place in Europe's second tier during the 2022-23 season, Francesco Calzona's side are therefore on track for at least a playoff when this year's group phase finishes.

However, if they are to pip Sweden to top spot, they must surely end their drought against Friday's opponents: Slovakia have yet to win in six previous meetings - most recently losing at the Euro 2020 finals.

Sitting alongside their next hosts on six points, Jon Dahl Tomasson's side cruised past their first two Nations League challengers without conceding a goal.

After losing three out of four friendly fixtures at the start of his reign, new Blagult boss Tomasson eased the pressure by recording back-to-back competitive wins in September, following a 3-1 success in Azerbaijan with a comprehensive home win three days later.

Having also found the net in Baku, Sporting Lisbon goal machine Viktor Gyokeres scored twice in Solna, while strike partner Alexander Isak also registered his third goal of the campaign as the Swedes strolled to victory in some style.

Following their relegation from League B in 2023, Sweden are already hot favourites for an immediate return, while winning Group 1 could potentially lead to a backdoor place in the World Cup playoffs, if required.

Taking maximum points this month would put them in pole position to claim top spot, but they have lost three of their last four away matches ahead of a tough assignment at Stadion Telhene Pole.