England vs Slovakia: Preview, predictions and lineups
Having made it to the last 16 of Euro 2024, England take on Slovakia as they aim to book their spot in the quarter-final.
Gareth Southgate and his players came under serious fire during the group stage, with England underperforming despite topping Group C. A narrow 1-0 win over Serbia was followed by bore draws with Denmark and Slovenia, with the Three Lions having netted just two goals at Euro 2024 so far.
There were not many positives to take from the group stage but at least England have reached the last 16 of another major tournament and avoided an embarrassing slip-up.
Slovakia kicked off their Euro 2024 campaign off in style with a 1-0 win over Belgium that offered the first major upset of the tournament. Despite that triumph, they had to settle for a third-placed finish after losing to Ukraine and drawing with Romania in their final two matches.
Here is 90min’s guide to England vs Slovakia at Euro 2024.
England vs Slovakia H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
England |
Slovakia |
|---|---|
|
England 0-0 Slovenia – 25/06/24 |
Slovakia 1-1 Romania – 26/06/24 |
|
Denmark 1-1 England – 20/06/24 |
Slovakia 1-2 Ukraine – 21/06/24 |
|
Serbia 0-1 England – 16/06/24 |
Belgium 0-1 Slovakia – 17/06/24 |
|
England 0-1 Iceland – 07/06/24 |
Slovakia 4-0 Wales – 09/06/24 |
|
England 3-0 Bosnia & Herzegovina – 03/06/24 |
Slovakia 4-0 San Marino – 05/06/24 |
|
Country |
TV channel / live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
BBC One, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport Website |
|
United States |
fuboTV, Sling, TUDN.com, Univision NOW, Foxsports.com, TUDN App, ViX, FOX Sports App, FOX Network, TUDN USA, Univision |
|
Canada |
CTV App, TVA+, TSN4, TVA Sports, CTV, TSN1 |
England have been without a few players at Euro 2024 due to injury, with the likes of Harry Maguire and Ben Chilwell missing out on the tournament. While Luke Shaw was called up to Southgate’s squad and has travelled to Germany, he is yet to feature for the Three Lions despite stepping up his recovery.
The left-back returned to full England training just before the goalless draw with Slovenia, meaning he could be available for the last 16 clash. However, there is no guarantee he will start given he’s been out of action since February.
Elsewhere, England don’t have any fresh injury concerns, although Southgate could make changes to his starting lineup given limp recent performances.
England predicted lineup vs Slovakia (4-2-3-1): Pickford; Walker, Stones, Guehi, Trippier; Mainoo, Rice; Saka, Bellingham, Foden; Kane.
Slovakia are unlikely to make many changes from the side that picked up a valuable point against Romania on Wednesday. Ondrej Duda, who netted Slovakia’s only goal of the game, is a slight injury doubt in midfield, but should be fit to feature.
Otherwise, Francesco Calzona has no injury issues to concern himself with ahead of the clash with the Three Lions, but he may recall striker Robert Bozenik to the starting lineup ahead of David Strelec.
Slovakia predicted lineup vs England (4-3-3): Dubravka; Pekarik, Vavro, Skriniar, Hancko; Kucka, Lobotka, Duda; Schranz, Bozenik, Haraslin.
If the group stage has taught us anything about these two teams it’s that we shouldn’t expect a high-scoring affair this Sunday. Neither side has netted more than a single goal in any game so far and they have managed just five strikes between them – three of which have come from Slovakia.
England have been subpar to say the least and are facing the prospect of a low Slovakia block made up of some resilient defenders. That has often spelled trouble for Southgate’s side, with the Three Lions boss having failed to unleash his side’s attacking potential in Germany.
England should make it through, but it’s unlikely to be convincing based on what we have seen already.