The battle for second place in Group I intensifies as Poland make the trip to the Arena Kombëtare

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Only one point separates the two sides heading into the final three matches of qualifying.

England lead World Cup qualifying Group I by some margin but it is the battle for second which is extremely close.

Three teams have the chance to finish as runners-up and earn the chance to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar via the play-offs.

Albania currently sit in second, one point ahead of Poland in third and five points ahead of Hungary in fourth, who need some sort of miracle in the final three games in order to clinch the play-off spot.

The Red and Blacks were victorious over the Hungarians last weekend as they won 1-0 after a 79th minute goal from Armando Broja.

On the other hand, Poland had the easy task of facing San Marino at the PGE Narodowy as they brushed Franco Varrella’s men with ease.

Goals from Karol Swiderski, an own goal from Cristian Brolli, Tomasz Kedziora, Adam Buksa and Krzysztof Piatek saw the White and Reds gain another three points in their World Cup qualification bid.

This game couldn’t be bigger for the Poles as they hope to qualify for a fourth consecutive international tournament.

Poland’s last game against Albania was a tricky one but fantastic finishing saw the White and Reds win 4-1 at the PGE Narodowy.

The deadlock was broken in the 12th minute through as captain Robert Lewandowski made it 1-0. The forward was in the right place at the right time as he headed the ball into the back of the net past a stranded Etrit Berisha.

Albania equalised in the 25th minute as Klaus Gjasula sent a delightful ball over Kamil Glik and into the path of Sokol Cikalleshi who put the ball past Wojciech Szczesny into the bottom right corner from a tight angle.

Before the half-time interval, Adam Buksa, on his international debut, gave Poland the lead once more as he met Przemyslaw Frankowski’s cross.

Grzegorz Krychowiak scored the third with the midfielder having the easy task of tapping the ball in from close range after Lewandowski’s brilliant work to provide the assist.

The score was set at 4-1 after Karol Linetty’s 89th minute goal as the White and Reds earned an important victory against Albania.

Poland are on a run of six games unbeaten against the Eagles with their last defeat against them coming back in 1953 during an international friendly.

A victory at the Arena Kombëtare for Paulo Sousa’s men and they will be a step closer to qualifying for the play-offs. However, if they fail to get a decent result, it will be an uphill task for Poland with two games to go.

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