Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions can keep their perfect record intact when they face off against their winless visitors at Wembley
England can keep themselves at the summit of European Championship qualifying Group A with another victory this weekend when they face struggling Bulgaria on home soil on Saturday.
Gareth Southgate’s side picked up a third-place finish in the Nations League finals in Portugal on their last outing and now return their attention to leading the chase for 2020’s pancontinental tournament at Wembley.
The Three Lions boss is expected to stick with an experienced starting XI for this key clash while his new call-ups make the bench – but if they are able to make themselves comfortable against Krasimir Balakov’s team, who have not won in almost a year, they may hand debuts to some fresh faces.
Having played twice as many games as their hosts already on the road to Euro 2020, the visitors know they need to produce a shock result and fast to keep their hopes of qualification alive.
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial) .
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be shown live on ITV 1. It will not be available for streaming.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| ITV 1 | N/A |
Squads & Team News
| Position | England squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Pickford, Heaton, Pope |
| Defenders | Trippier, Rose, Keane, Maguire, Gomez, Chilwell, Mings, Alexander-Arnold |
| Midfielders | Winks, Lingard, Henderson, Rice, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Barkley, Maddison, Mount |
| Forwards | Kane, Sterling, Sancho, Rashford, Wilson |
Coach Gareth Southgate rung several changes with his first squad of the season, with over half-a-dozen faces from the Nations League finals cut out of the equation, but he has only lost one new arrival to injury, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka pulling out this week.
Atletico Madrid defender Kieran Trippier starts ahead of Liverpool‘s Trent Alexander-Arnold, while the team’s three other uncapped stars in Mason Mount, Tyrone Mings and James Maddison have to make do with the bench.
England starting XI: Pickford; Trippier, Keane, Maguire, Rose; Henderson, Rice, Barkley; Sterling, Rashford, Kane.
Subs: Heaton, Pope, Alexander-Arnold, Chilwell, Gomez, Mings, Winks, Mount, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Maddison, Sancho, Wilson.
| Position | Bulgaria squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Iliev, Lukov, Hristo Ivanov |
| Defenders | Bodurov, Strahil Popov, Bozhikov, Nedyalkov, Terziev, Goranov, Kristian Dimitrov, Pashov |
| Midfielders | Milanov, Slavchev, Sarmov, Kraev, Nikolay Dimitrov, Marcelinho, Galin Ivanov, Malinov, Panayotov, Wanderson |
| Forwards | Ivelin Popov, Despodov, Mladenov |
Krasimir Balakov has included six uncapped faces in his squad, including Brazil-born midfielder Wanderson, who has followed in the footsteps of his fellow countryman and Ludogorets Razgrad team-mate Marcelinho in earning a call-up after claiming a Bulgarian passport.
Arsenal Tula’s Georgi Kostadinov has been forced to withdraw though injury however.
Bulgaria starting XI: Iliev; S Popov, Bodurov, Bozhikov, Nedyalkov; G Ivanov, Sarmov, Malinov, I Popov, Wanderson; Marcelinho.
Betting & Match Odds
England are outstanding favourites to take the win at 1/11 with bet365 . Bulgaria can be backed at a more distant 33/1 while the draw is available at 12/1.
Match Preview
England and Gareth Southgate know that their Euro 2020 destiny remains firmly in their own hands as they get back to their qualifcation campaign against Bulgaria at Wembley on Saturday.
Backing up their fourth-place finish at last year’s World Cup in Russia with a third-place result at the Nations League finals in June, the Three Lions manager is looking to keep his perfect Group A record intact, having not played any of their rivals since March.
They square off with Krasimir Balakov’s team who have not won a game for close to a year now, and who know very much that their hopes of reaching next year’s pancontinental tournament rests on providing a shock win in London.
Despite facing a side ranked well over 50 places beneath them in FIFA’s latest list, Southgate still feels that his side are capable of falling victim to any opponent, and that they still have much to prove in terms of their status as a global heavyweight.
“I think we’ve got everything to prove in terms of where we’re pitched in world rankings,” he stated to Sky Sports . “I think we’re competitive against any team, but equally I think there are a number of teams who, on their day – as was proven in the summer – are capable of beating us.
“We have to keep striving to improve and I think the mentality of the team is to do that, they’re hungry to do that, they want to do that, they want to keep learning, we want to keep pushing each other every day in training, and if we do that, we’ll take those performances onto the field. So for us, I’m looking forward to the new international season, if you like.”
Having named four uncapped players in his squad – though only able to now call on three with Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s exit due to injury – the former Middlesbrough boss is looking to blood a new generation of talent as his side continue to build towards not just next year’s European Championships, but the World Cup in Qatar in 2022 too.
One man expected to feature heavily over the next three years will be Borussia Dortmund forward Jadon Sancho, who has proved himself more than capable since making the step up to senior level, with Southgate offering nothing but praise for the striker’s skills.
“Jadon, in terms of his game, is hugely exciting in terms of his balance, the quality of his crosses,” he added. “He gets into areas behind defences and the way that Dortmund play is a significant part of that. He plays lots of those low crosses across the six-yard box.
“What I really like is his decision-making. When he’s moving at speed, he’s able to get his head up and make the right decisions in terms of weight of pass, which pass is the best one to pick out. And that’s not an easy thing to do when you’re travelling at speed with the ball.”
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