Nations League Fantasy: Best Fixtures for Rounds 5 and 6

Albania, Montenegro, France and Portugal have the clearest fixture appeal for the final two Nations League Fantasy rounds. Norway also merits consideration despite three straight defeats: two came against Portugal, and its remaining opponents offer a softer finish. Fixture difficulty can help identify where a team has room to score, but it can’t guarantee goals, clean sheets or minutes for any particular player.

Best schedules to target

Albania are among just three teams with two favourable fixtures. They lost 2–1 away to Finland last round after an early red card complicated matters for their Fantasy options. That dismissal is a reminder that a single match can distort a team’s apparent form, particularly when it changes the conditions for everyone on the pitch. Back-to-back matches against Belarus give Albania a strong chance to respond, though managers still need to weigh the fixture against individual players’ likely roles.

Montenegro sit top of League C Group 2 and face Latvia and Cyprus. They beat both opponents 2–1 in the reverse fixtures, giving the upcoming meetings a useful point of comparison. Those results don’t mean the same outcomes are assured, but they make the schedule easier to assess than one built on unfamiliar matchups. Montenegro’s current form adds to the appeal for managers looking for options across both rounds.

France have taken 10 points from four matches, with Italy the only team to stop them winning. A trip to Italy comes first, followed by a home match against Türkiye, who have lost all four of their Nations League games. The second fixture looks especially promising on paper, while the Italy match presents the sterner test. That split matters for Fantasy planning: managers can judge France across the two rounds rather than treating both fixtures as equally attractive.

Portugal have also won all four of their matches. They host Denmark in Round 5 and then travel to Wales, with a chance to extend their winning run to six games. Their perfect record makes them an obvious source of interest, but it also raises the practical question of how much managers should pay for recent results when the next opponent is Denmark. The trip to Wales completes a favourable looking run, though away fixtures still carry uncertainty.

Norway’s chance to finish strongly

Norway’s three consecutive losses make its recent record look poor, but two defeats came against Portugal. That context changes the reading of the streak: it’s still a run of losses, yet it doesn’t tell the whole story about Norway’s prospects against other opposition. The remaining schedule is more encouraging, with Wales visiting in Round 5 before Norway travel to Denmark.

The fixtures are rated easy and medium, respectively, giving the team room to recover and Fantasy managers a potential alternative to the leading contenders. Here’s the thing: schedule ratings describe the matchup, not the certainty of a result. Norway’s recent defeats may make its options less obvious than those from Portugal or France, but the closing fixtures give managers a reason to reassess rather than simply dismiss the team.

And this is the part most people overlook: a favourable schedule can matter most when it offers a credible alternative to the teams everyone already wants. If you're choosing between players, the opponent is one input alongside form and expected involvement. Norway’s run is a case for a closer look, not a promise of a turnaround.

Fixture tickers for all 54 nations

The group-by-group ticker lists every nation’s remaining opponents across Rounds 5 and 6. It gives managers a quick way to compare the two fixtures attached to each team, including sides that aren’t among the obvious headline picks. Use it to spot where a promising run extends beyond the teams discussed above, or where a seemingly strong option faces a tougher pairing than its recent results suggest.

A second ticker ranks all 54 nations from the most favourable schedule to the toughest over the same two rounds. The ranking makes broad comparisons easier, while the group-by-group view keeps each team’s actual opponents in sight. Neither view removes the uncertainty of individual matches, but together they can help narrow the field before managers make their final selections.

What the final two rounds mean

With only two group-stage rounds left, fixture strength points managers toward several in-form sides, while Norway’s easier closing slate may offer value beyond its recent results. This is more significant than it looks: at this stage, there’s little time for a long-term bet to pay off, so the next opponent can shape a player’s appeal quickly. The numbers here are underwhelming as a standalone guide; a schedule ranking can organize the choices, but it can’t say which player will deliver.

If you're working through your final selections, compare the tickers with each team’s recent results and the specific match sequence. France’s second fixture stands out, Portugal bring an unbeaten start, and Albania and Montenegro each have two attractive matchups. Norway’s case depends on whether you think its defeats say more about its form or about the quality of the opposition it faced. A useful shortlist, then. Not a forecast.