Harry Maguire England Man United England
Harry Maguire Man United

England got past the Danish test in the semi-final of the European Championship thanks to an extra-time goal from Harry Kane. And courtesy this 2-1 win they will now have the chance to play in their first major tournament final since 1966.

The Three Lions have been in superb form in the European Championship and so far they have conceded only a single goal in the tournament which came courtesy of a top-draw free kick from Denmark’s Mikkel Damsgaard.

Gareth Southgate has a few tough selection calls going into Sunday’s final but thankfully he does not have any injury concerns from the semi-final win. The manager will have to decide whether to start with a back-four or a three-man central defence on Sunday as we have a feeling the right tactic could prove to be the difference between a win and a loss.

England are undefeated in their last 9 matches in the Euros but Italy are not in the finals by any fluke. Having said that, the English side will be playing in front of the Wembley crowd so home advantage could turn out to be a major factor in deciding the outcome of this match.

England team news vs Italy:

Jordan Pickford has been superb in goal for England so he will start as the No 1 and we have a feeling the manager is going to stick with the same formation that he used against Denmark.

Harry Maguire and John Stones will play in central defence with Luke Shaw reprising his role as the left-back. Kieran Trippier will be pushing Kyle Walker for a place in the side but the Manchester City man has not yet put a foot wrong.

Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips have formed the perfect partnership in defensive midfield and they will start in that same position on Sunday as well. Jordan Henderson will come into the side if the game goes into extra time.

It’s pretty clear Gareth Southgate wants Jack Grealish to come and make an impact off the bench so Mason Mount is expected to start in the No 10 role against Italy. Plus, Italy might be looking to play on the break so someone of Mount will be much more helpful in tracking back.

 

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Raheem Sterling ended up winning the penalty which helped England beat Denmark in the semi-final and the Man City man is going to remain in the starting line-up vs Italy as well.

Bukayo Saka had a really underwhelming game in midweek as Whoscored rated him just 6.2/10. We expect the Arsenal youngster to move to the bench for the final.

The manager has to choose between Jadon Sancho and Phil Foden as the right winger and since the City star came on as a sub in the semi-final, we expect him to get the nod ahead of Jadon Sancho.

England’s predicted line-up vs Italy:

Possible Line-up: Jordan Pickford; Maguire, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Walker; Declan Rice, Phillips, Mason Mount; Raheem Sterling, Foden, Harry Kane.

England predicted XI vs Italy

Read: England could very easily fall into the Italy’s generation old trap in the final.

Read: Three tactics that could help England beat Italy on Sunday.

Read: Jose Mourinho predicts this player to start for the Three Lions against Italy.

Read: Italy’s team news for the European Championship final.