New Zealand and Fiji, two sides that kicked off their 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers with a win, square off at Qatar SC Stadium on Monday.
The All Whites secured a 1-0 win at Monday's venue as Ben Waine scored the winning goal in the 75th minute of the game against Papua New Guinea. They were without some of their key players for the game but will have a full squad at their disposal.
Fiji secured a 2-1 win over New Caledonia at Monday's venue as Sairusi Nalaubu scored the winning goal in the 89th minute of the game, having given them a lead in the 11th-minute.
New Zealand vs Fiji Head-to-Head
This will be the 40th meeting between the two Pacific Ocean rivals. New Zealand have dominated the proceedings against their northern rivals, winning 30 games. Fiji have just five wins to their name while four games have ended in draws.
Though the bulk of the games in this fixture have been international friendlies, the rest have been in FIFA World Cup qualifiers. They last met in 2017 in a World Cup qualifying fixture at Wellington Regional Stadium, with the game ending in a 2-0 win for the All Whites.
New Zealand form guide (all competitions): W-L-W-W-W
Fiji form guide (all competitions): W-W-D-W-L
New Zealand vs Fiji Team News
New Zealand
Michael Boxall, Elliot Collier, Sarpreet Singh, and Ryan Thomas have not been included in the 30-man squad on account of injuries and Michael Woud remains unavailable with club commitments.
Chris Wood joined the club ahead of the opening game against Papua New Guinea but was not included in the squad. The remaining 11 players have joined up with the squad and are available for selection here.
Injured: Michael Boxall, Elliot Collier, Sarpreet Singh.
Doubtful: None.
Suspended: None
Unavailable: Michael Woud (not released by club)
Fiji
Anish Khem is the only injury concern for the Bula Boys as Krishna Roy recovered from a knock to feature in the opening fixture of the campaign.
Injured: Anish Khem
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
New Zealand vs Fiji Predicted XI
New Zealand Predicted XI (4-3-3): Oliver Sail (GK); Winston Reid, Tommy Smith, Francis de Vries, Nikko Boxall; Niko Kirwan, Cameron Howieson, Clayton Lewis; Andre de Jong, Ben Waine, Joe Champness
Fiji Predicted XI (4-4-2): Mohammed Alzaar Alam (GK); Kishan Sami, Remueru Tekiate, Muni Shivam Naidu, Inoke Turagalailai; Lekima Lex Gonerau, Ashnil Kumar Raju, Tevita Waranaivalu, Rahul Ram Naresh; Roy Krishna, Sairusi Nalaubu
New Zealand vs Fiji Prediction
Both sides secured a win in their opening fixtures of the campaign and will be gunning for the top spot in Group B. The All Whites have a great record against Fiji and should come out on top here.
Prediction: New Zealand 2-1 Fiji