The State of Play
Gareth Southgate oversaw another lacklustre and underwhelming display against one of the world’s top ranked teams as the Three Lions were beaten by a much-changed Brazilian side by a goal to nil at Wembley Stadium on Saturday afternoon. That ended a 21-match unbeaten run of form at home for England and does up the pressure a little bit ahead of this showdown with Belgium on Tuesday evening.
Domenico Tedesco replaced Roberto Martinez at the end of a disappointing 2022 FIFA World Cup in the Belgian dugout and the former Schalke boss is still unbeaten in charge of the Red Devils. They do, though, themselves come into this one on the back of an underwhelming performance and result in their most recent outing, having the worst of a goalless draw against Ireland in Dublin.
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Team News
As is to be expected given the time of the season, England have been majorly hampered by injuries in this squad with Bukayo Saka pulling out before the Brazil game and now Sam Johnstone, Kyle Walker and Harry Kane all also returning to their clubs before this one.
Belgium have their own availability concerns with Thibaut Courtois still unavailable due to an injury setback, although the Real Madrid goalkeeper is reportedly in dispute with Tedesco over being overlooked for the captaincy anyway. Kevin De Bruyne is also missing through injury.
Expected Line-ups
England: Pickford; Konsa, Stones, Gomez, Chilwell; Mainoo, Rice; Palmer, Bellingham, Foden; Toney
Belgium: Sels; Meunier, Faes, Theate, Castagne; Vermeeren, Onana, Tielemans; Bakayoko, Lukaku, Doku
What they Said
Gareth Southgate remained upbeat and positive after England’s loss to Brazil on Saturday, defiantly saying ‘I’m not down’ in his post-match press conference.
Domenico Tedesco complained of the preparation for his side ahead of the friendly with Ireland the other day due to the departure of Stephen Kenny. It would therefore surely be an easier practice for him to plan for this game with Southgate nearing his seventh year in charge of England.
When and How to Watch
This match will take place at 19:45 on Tuesday March 26th at Wembley Stadium in London and will be televised live on Channel 4 in the UK and will also be able to be streamed live via the Channel 4 or Sky Go apps in the UK.
Prediction
England went into their clash with five-time world champions Brazil as favourites on Saturday and then proceeded to turn in another underwhelming display. However, quite frankly, they should head into this summer with an understanding that they should be better than Belgium and they really should be with home advantage, too, so backing England remains the best bet.