Home of football statistics and historyWembley Stadium will play host to the first-ever encounter between England and Ivory Coast.
Tuesday’s fixture in London will serve to drop the curtain on the Three Lions’ international break.
Gareth Southgate’s side came from behind to beat Switzerland 2-1 on Saturday as goals from Luke Shaw and Harry Kane either side of half-time cancelled out Breel Embolo’s opener. If you are betting on the Ivory Coast game, make sure you use the freetips.com NEWBONUS promo code to help you get a leg up in your bets this week. England are the bookmakers’ favourites but this being a friendly near the end of the season, we expect this to be another tough game for the hosts.
Match preview
England
England last met an African nation at the 2018 World Cup when Kane’s brace fired them to a 2-1 victory over Tunisia.
That success has extended the Three Lions’ eye-catching unbeaten run against countries from the world’s second-largest continent to 19 matches (W13, D6).
Saturday’s win over Switzerland helped Kane and co set an unprecedented feat, having made it 21 international games without losing (W17, D4) for the first time in the nation’s history.
Southgate’s men have now lost just once in their last 22 outings at Wembley (W18, D4), conceding one goal or less on each occasion in that spread of matches.
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast will be keen to bounce back from a 2-1 defeat to reigning world champions France last time out that saw them squander an early lead.
The Ivorians now stare at the possibility of losing back-to-back internationals for the first time since a run of three reverse back in January 2018.
After losing both previous games held on foreign soil, excluding their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations contests, Patrice Beaumelle’s men have a point to prove.
The Elephants could pose a genuine attacking threat, though, having scored in four of their last five outings across all competitions, at an average of 1.4 per match.
Team news
England
Southgate handed Tyrick Mitchell, Marc Guehi and Kyle Walker-Peters their first England caps at the weekend, with the latter two starting the game.
Despite the victory, England looked a bit tired and out of steam in the engine room, which could relegate Jordan Henderson and Conor Gallagher to the bench on Tuesday.
In-demand West Ham United ace Declan Rice, who would embrace the prospect of re-signing for Chelsea (via Evening Standard), could regain his place in the starting XI.
Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham could join the Hammers star in Southgate’s double-pivot after making a cameo appearance against the Swiss.
Ivory Coast
Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha will feature for Ivory Coast against his club teammates Mitchell, Guehi and Gallagher.
The 29-year-old wore the England shirt at senior level twice before deciding to swap allegiances in 2016, having often been overlooked by the former Three Lions gaffer Sam Allardyce and Southgate himself beforehand.
AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie, who has agreed personal terms with Barcelona (via Fabrizio Romano), will be another high-profile starter for the Ivorians.
Ajax goal-scoring machine Sebastien Haller will lead the line, while Arsenal’s Nicolas Pepe could retain his starting berth after breaking the deadlock against France.
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