Nothing to lose
In the Nations League, North Macedonia managed to control games against teams of a similar level with a 4-2-3-1 formation, but versus the Netherlands, Austria and Ukraine at the Euros, the stability of the defence and energy of midfielders Arijan Ademi, Boban Nikolov, Eljif Elmas and Enis Bardhi covering the pitch will be crucial.
Coach Angelovski used 3-5-2 when North Macedonia drew 1-1 with Italy in a 2018 World Cup qualifier, and also in the shock win against Germany in March, and that is a more cautious approach. With a back three, Egzon Bejtulai or Kire Ristevski could join starters Visar Musliu and Darko Velkovski as central defenders, but a more likely option is Stefan Ristovski moving inside and Nikolov playing right wing-back.
Ilija Nestorovski is first-choice striker, but Ivan Trichkovski or Aleksandar Trajkovski offer better defensive skills.
Pandev is the main creator. His scoring capacity and passing ability will see him float behind the striker in a 4-2-3-1, while in a 3-5-2 he stays higher up the pitch.
The team’s tactics will be focused on lots of quick passes, the crossing of Enis Bardhi, the agility of wing-backs Ezgjan Alioski and Ristovski, and the lucidity of all-round playmaker Elmas.