Home of football statistics and historyWe’ll see a repeat of the Euro 2020 final when England face-off against Italy in the Nations League at Molineux Stadium on Saturday evening.
The game will be played behind closed doors after UEFA sanctioned England for crowd trouble during the Euro final last summer, but Gareth Southgate will hope the lack of support won’t dampen the performance.
England are at risk of dropping to League B after only taking 1 point from their opening two games. A shock 1-0 defeat to Hungary was followed by a 1-1 draw with Germany in midweek with Harry Kane scoring a late equaliser from the spot in Munich.
Italy head into the game off the back of a narrow 2-1 victory over Hungary which sees them top Group A3 on 4 points having drawn with Germany in their opening game.
The European champions have not lost away from home since September 2018 and haven’t lost on English soil in 15 matches, so they’ll be confident of picking up a positive result this weekend.
Betting odds
There is sure to be plenty of interest in this game on the betting markets so punters should look out for the best betting sign up offers and odds before placing any wagers as bookies will be vying for your business.
England are currently priced as the 3/4 favourites to win the game at Molineux. Italy are 15/4 to claim victory in London while the draw can be backed at odds of 12/5 with many bookmakers.
A 2-1 win for England looks good at odds of 7/1 while Harry Kane to score first is also tempting at 11/4. If we combine those bets to back Kane to open the scoring in a 2-1 England victory, the odds increase to 34/1.
Team news
England midfielder Kalvin Phillips is a doubt for the game after being forced off during the early stages of the draw with Germany due to a ‘severe dead leg’. The Leeds United star is unlikely to be fit to start this weekend.
However, Phil Foden could be back in contention after missing the Germany game due to a positive covid test. James Justin will also be assessed ahead of the game on Saturday after suffering a calf injury against Hungary.
Fiyako Tomori is set to miss out once again due to a hamstring injury while Trent Alexander-Arnold won’t feature this weekend after being given a well-earned rest.
Jack Grealish is pushing for a recall after impressing off the bench in Munich while Tammy Abraham and Jude Bellingham should also get some minutes.
As for Italy, they’ll be without Leonardo Bonucci and Andrea Belotti after they were allowed to leave the squad to start their holidays early. Mancini could make some changes with the likes of Manuel Locatelli, Sandro Tonali and Giovanni Di Lorenzo all pushing for recalls.
Prediction
England 2-1 Italy: The Three Lions have been poor in their two Nations League games so far so Southgate will be demanding an improved display. Italy are on a terrific run away from home but the starting eleven will be severely weakened so England should be confident of edging it.
0 Comments