The omens are already rolling in for England.
Never before had they won their first game at a European Championship. Croatia, in three of their last four major tournaments, have lost to the eventual winners.
The Three Lions are one of the few nations further benefiting from playing all their group matches in their own country and the atmosphere in London against Scotland was just as electric as expected with thousands of Tartan Army representatives rolling into town.
Gareth Southgate’s side face the Czech Republic in their final Group D match, looking to lay down a marker to the other tournament favourites but wary of the increasingly formidable Patrik Schick, who continued his scoring streak against Croatia from the spot.
It could be a chance for Southgate to mix it up. So far, England’s tournament has been rife with debate, from the initial exile of Jack Grealish to the role of Harry Kane.
The extent to which England are blessed with options is no bad thing, with the likes of Jadon Sancho and Jude Bellingham pushing for a place in the starting XI.
The Croatia and Scotland games ought to have given Southgate a clearer idea of exactly who is undroppable, buoyed by the return of Harry Maguire from the ankle injury which threatened to overshadow his summer.
And while it will be hard not to begin looking ahead and dreaming of the knockout rounds – and beyond – the hosts will first have to ensure they finish the first stage in style.
How to watch Czech Republic vs England
- Date: Tuesday 22 June
- Kick-off time: 8pm [BST]
- Venue: Hampden Park (Scotland)
- TV channel: ITV
- Live stream: Watch the game online via ITV Hub
- Highlights: Shown on ITV Hub each matchday
Scouting report
It doesn’t take Pep Guardiola to work out who the Czech Republic’s chief attacking threat is. Inconsistent for his club, deadly for his country, Patrik Schick is a headband and European Championship golden boot away from going full Milan Baros. After scoring a fine header and tournament-defining wonder-goal from 50 yards against poor old David Marshall, Schick notched his third goal of Euro 2020 from the penalty spot against Croatia after feeling the sharp end of Dejan Lovren’s elbow.
Debatable though the penalty award was, a bloodied Schick dispatched the spot-kick with aplomb, sending Dominik Livakovic the wrong way and side-footing it into the corner. It was the 25-year-old’s 14th goal in 28 appearances and England’s centre backs will have to be wary of his intelligent movement and cutting edge.
Dangerous as Schick is, he can’t do much without good service. His penalty was his side’s only shot on target all game and he became so isolated in the second period that he ended up being replaced by the 6’2 target man Michal Krmencik. Since losing 2-1 to the Czechs in October 2019, England have kept 13 clean sheets in 17 games and sticking tight to their opponents’ wide players will go some way towards making it 14 from 18.
At the opposite end of the pitch, Tomas Vaclik had a mixed afternoon. Recently released by Sevilla, Vaclik impressed with his shot-stopping against Scotland, but he will have been disappointed at letting Ivan Perisic’s ripsnorting effort fly through his hands.
Vaclik’s distribution was shaky too. A nervy shanked clearance early on inadvertently set up a Croatian attack and not long after he was the most relieved man in Edinburgh when an attempted hoof upfield ricocheted off Ante Rebic and floated wide. The centre backs have also looked rather susceptible to pressing thus far and England’s attackers will be encouraged to hound the Czech defenders to force errors.
Elsewhere, a couple of familiar faces will have to be watched carefully. In both matches so far, the Czechs have funnelled most of their attacking moves down their right touchline where West Ham’s energetic full back Vladimir Coufal can be seen chugging up and down. Only the left-sided attacker Jakub Jankto has created more chances (five) than Coufal (four) for the Czechs.
Premier League Player of the Season nominee Tomas Soucek had to play a more disciplined role against Croatia, due largely to the quality of their ball-hungry midfielders, Luka Modric and Mateo Kovacic. However, he demonstrated the attacking threat that yielded 10 league goals last season against Scotland when having three efforts on goal. Declan Rice will have to track his stealthy surges forward diligently.
More from i on Euro 2020
- The football nomad who became a hero for his role in saving Eriksen’s life
- How Ronaldo’s Coca-Cola stunt could change the face of football sponsorship
- In praise of Emma Hayes, the best pundit at Euro 2020 so far
- Eriksen collapse has thrown a spotlight on football’s relentless thirst for more
- How to watch every Euro 2020 match on TV and online in the UK
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3xybyi4
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