Swift qualification for the knockout stage is on the line for England as they prepare to face the United States of America the day after Thanksgiving knowing three more points would guarantee a spot in the round of 16. Indeed in this most grueling of World Cups, winning their first two games might offer Gareth Southgate an opportunity to rotate in the final game against Wales, where a point would be enough.
That might constitute getting ahead of themselves for England, who have had their fair share of upsets against the USMNT at the World Cup. A 1-0 defeat in 1950 was so unexpected that some back in the United Kingdom assumed that dispatches from Brazil included a typo in the score whilst a 1-1 draw in 2010 was a devastating start to a disastrous World Cup. Here are our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
How to watch and odds
- Date: Friday, September 25 | Time: 2 p.m. ET
- Location: Al Bayt Stadium -- Al Khor
- TV: Fox and Telemundo | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
- Odds: England -182; Draw +300; USA +500 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
England storylines
Fears that the blow Harry Kane took to his ankle in the 6-2 win over Iran on Monday seem to have eased and if the England captain is fit Southgate could well be tempted to stick with the XI that started the tournament in such impressive fashion. Equally Kyle Walker is also working his way back to fitness, offering deeper options in the backline, and it is now only James Maddison who is struggling for fitness.
Southgate is expected to stick with the 4-3-3 system he utilised in the opener, allowing England to match numbers against a midfield that is a relative strong point for the US, but with one fewer center back the pressure will be on the defense to tighten up after they conceded two sloppy goals in a convincing win. England have kept only two clean sheets in 2022 and their goalkeeper Jordan Pickford said, "As a whole squad we want to keep clean sheets because we know how important they are through tournament football. We were 4-0 up and conceded an easy goal really. They got a penalty which was a bit of an indifferent one. You're never going to be happy conceding a goal and we will build on to USA and hopefully get a clean sheet."
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Prediction
England are by far the superior team and if they are at anything like the level they reached on Monday this should be a comfortable win. Pick: England 2, USA 0
