England will seek their fifth straight win in Euro 2024 qualification when they face Ukraine in Poland on Saturday.
The Three Lions are sitting pretty atop Group C but must be wary of second-placed Ukraine and will have to cope without a number of key players sidelined through both injury and Gareth Southgate’s personal preference.
Here’s how the boss could set up.
GK: Jordan Pickford – Buoyed by his heroics for Everton before the break, Pickford should arrive at this game in high spirits.
RB: Kyle Walker – With Reece James and Trent Alexander-Arnold both injured, the debate over Southgate’s starting right-back is significantly less intense this month.
CB: Marc Guehi – John Stones’ injury absence will see one of Guehi, Levi Colwill or Lewis Dunk start here. Of the trio, it’s the Crystal Palace man who has spent the most time in Southgate’s squad, and that usually means a lot.
CB: Harry Maguire – Southgate is doing all he can to keep Maguire’s international career alive but if the Manchester United man doesn’t see regular minutes soon, his time in the squad could come to an end.
LB: Ben Chilwell – England aren’t stacked in this position at the best of times and so, with Luke Shaw out injured, Chilwell is the only other option.
DM: Declan Rice – Rice was the hero for Arsenal as he scored the late winner against Man Utd. A similar show of heroics here would go down a treat.
CM: Jude Bellingham – Real Madrid’s newest star, Bellingham’s dominance in Spain may force Southgate to tinker his tactics like Carlo Ancelotti did to maximise the midfielder.
CM: James Maddison – Jordan Henderson’s club move to Saudi Arabia should bring about his end to a significant role in this squad, while few players have impressed in England quite like Maddison this season.
RW: Bukayo Saka – A routine recovery session had fans sweating earlier in the week but there should be no fitness problems for Saka to contend with.
ST: Harry Kane – For many English fans, international football may be their only chance to get a glimpse of Kane before he returns to Bayern Munich.
LW: Marcus Rashford – Jack Grealish is injured and Raheem Sterling was left at home, so expect Rashford to get the nod.
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