Estonia lost seven of their eight games during the Euro 2024 qualifying campaign and ended up with a goal difference of -20. Nevertheless, they earned the right to participate in the Euro 2024 play-offs thanks to their success in the 2022/23 Nations League, when they finished top of a sub-group including Malta and San Marino.

Poland won three and drew two of their eight matches during qualifying, finishing third in Group E behind Albania and the Czech Republic. The Poles have appeared in the last four European Championships, reaching the quarter-finals in 2016, where they were beaten by eventual winners Portugal.

Poland also made it to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, losing in the round of 16 to finalists France.

Poland's squad includes eight players, who ply their trade in Italy and three from the English Premier League. There is also, of course, captain Robert Lewandowski, who has scored 82 goals in 146 international appearances. Lewandowski also provided two assists and scored once for Barcelona in their 3-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Sunday.

For Estonia, Sergei Zenjov, Mattias Käit, Rauno Sappinen, Martin Miller, Taijo Teniste, Ramol Sillamaa and Rocco Robert Shein all missed out of the trip to Poland through injury. Captain Konstantin Vassiljev is injured too and has not yet played in the Meistriliiga this season as a result.

Ahead of the game, Vassiljev, who previously played club football in Poland, said he expects the home team to put Estonia under pressure from the off.

"We are preparing for a very tough game. Poland are favorites, being at home with their home crowd. I'm definitely expecting them to come out with a lot of energy from the first second and so, we just have to be ready for that," Vassiljev said.

Ex-Liverpool defender Ragnar Klavan, now of Tallinna Kalev, is back in the squad however for the first time since March 2022.

"I'm looking forward to the game ahead of us. It will definitely be a very tough challenge, but what we are fighting for is a really big dream for me and all the other players."

Head coach Thomas Häberli said his team have to play bravely. "We already knew in March 2022 that if everything goes as expected, this game will come. Now there is just a day left and we want to be brave, and we want to fight for Estonia," Häberli said at a press conference on Wednesday.

The Euro 2024 qualifying match between Poland Estonia kicks off at 9.45 p.m. Estonian time on Thursday.

The other Euro 2024 play-off semi-final between Wales and Finland will take place at the same time. The winners of the two games will meet each other in the play-off final on March 26, to determine which side makes it the finals in Germany.

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