England fans got their first glimpse of what to expect from the national team this summer as Gareth Southgate’s troops reported to training over the weekend, without those from Manchester City and Chelsea who competed in the Champions League final.
Southgate has less than two weeks to prepare his troops for Euro 2020, where they head into their Group D fixtures as favourites with the bookies to lift the trophy at Wembley next month.
The head coach’s preparations haven’t been aided by three Premier League sides reaching European finals this summer. In fact, three of Southgate’s four first-choice defenders were in action less than a week ago – with Harry Maguire sitting out on the sidelines as Manchester United lost to Villarreal in the Europa League final.
Austria should prove an effective opposition for England’s fringe members who make the 26-man cut on Tuesday. Franco Foda is preparing his side to face the Netherlands, Ukraine and North Macedonia this month – and is likely to emphasise defensive solidity here in the wake of their 4-0 defeat to Denmark last time out.
How to watch England vs Austria
England vs Austria will kick off at 8pm on Wednesday 2 June at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium.
The match will be shown live on ITV 1, with TV coverage starting from 7.30pm. Fans will also be able to live stream England vs Austria via the ITV Hub app on a range of mobile and tablet devices, as well as online via ITV’s website.
The debate over who should start for England at the Euros this summer has raged all season. In fact, captain Harry Kane is arguably the only player guaranteed to get into everyone’s ideal XI.
Southgate is expected to make plenty of changes on Wednesday night to keep his players fresh – and Sunday’s final pre-Euros warm-up tie with Romania is likely to better reflect his selection choices before their first group clash with Croatia a week later.
Here, i looks at the selection dilemmas facing the manager this midweek…
Second-string defence
With Ben Chilwell still recovering from the Champions League final, it would appear that Luke Shaw has the left-back position nailed down. With Maguire unlikely to be risked for a friendly as he continues to recover from injury, and John Stones playing in Saturday’s Champions League final, Southgate is expected to draft in Conor Coady and Tyrone Mings into the centre of defence.
England are flush with right-back options and newly-crowned European champion Reece James has certainly impressed in that position this season. However, the youngster is unlikely to start this tie considering he played 90 minutes in Portugal on Saturday, as did Manchester City’s Kyle Walker.
Southgate could therefore bring in Trent Alexander-Arnold, or opt for Kieran Tripper – assuming either man makes Tuesday’s 26-man squad cut. Last year Alexander-Arnold was almost assured a place in England’s XI but a tricky 2020-21 campaign has cast his participation in the Euros into doubt.
Weighing up the midfield
There is debate as to how Southgate could set up his team but the manager likes to have four at the back, with a holding midfielder acting as cover. In that regard, Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips are two options Southgate has for that role – but neither man is fully fit coming into the tournament.
Phillips is nursing a shoulder injury picked up in Leeds’ last Premier League game if the season, while Henderson has been steadily recovering from a groin issue. Should they not be risked here, Declan Rice is most likely to be tasked with the central duties.
Phil Foden and Mason Mount would have expected to be handed the chance to dazzle either side of the West Ham man, but both played in the Champions League final. So Jack Grealish and Jude Bellingham – assuming they make the squad – could get the nod against Austria.
All-out attack
England’s 4-3-3 system relies on the central midfielder covering the back line and handing freedom to the two wide midfielders to bomb on, which can create a five-man offensive arsenal in a flash.
Kane should lead the line once again for England here, with Jadon Sancho playing on one side of the captain. Southgate will have to decide whether either Marcus Rashford or Raheem Sterling has done enough to get into his first XI – and this friendly could be the stage for both men to prove their worth.
Sterling was largely overlooked by Pep Guardiola’s in Manchester City’s charge to the Champions League final until he played 77 minutes in Porto, while Rashford has managed just three goals since mid-February. Kane, meanwhile, will almost certainly be replaced by Dominic Calvert-Lewin midway through the game. The Everton man is due to act as understudy for England’s kingpin during the Euros and will probably have to make do with substitute appearances, unless Kane suffers an injury.
England predicted XI vs Austria:
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3vFcHE1
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