England won two out of their three group games thereby topping Group D and they will now face Germany in the Round of 16 on Tuesday at Wembley.
The Three Lions have played pretty decent football so far in the tournament but their real test begins this week. Many experts think if England can get past the Germans then they have a great chance of winning the European Championship.
This will be the two teams’ third meeting in the Euros and their last encounter ended in a 1-0 win for the Three Lions at EURO 2000. But, on the flip side, the English have failed to win their last seven matches against Germany at the Wembley Stadium, drawing two and losing five.
Gareth Southgate has more or less a fully fit squad to choose from on Tuesday but his first major headache will be to select the right formation. Some feel the manager is going to opt for a three-man defensive line but we doubt if he is going to sacrifice an attacking player just to add one more defender. England have done great so far with a traditional back-four and Southgate is likely to stick with that.
England team news vs Germany:
If it’s a three-man defence then Tyrone Mings is going to come into the side with Shaw and Reece James likely to play as the two wing-backs.
But if it’s a 4-2-3-1 formation then Harry Maguire and John Stones will be playing in central defence with Luke Shaw at left-back. In this system, Kyle Walker is going to get the nod ahead of James.
Ben Chilwell will also be back from quarantine but we don’t think the manager is going to use him in the starting line-up. Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips are going to reprise their roles in central midfield.
The manager also has the option of Jordan Henderson but the Liverpool man should only be used as a sub.
Mason Mount is another player who is isolating but the latest reports suggest Gareth Southgate is very much inclined to use him in the starting line-up on Tuesday.
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If Mount starts then Jack Grealish will once again have to move back to the bench since Raheem Sterling will get the nod to start as the left winger.
Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka are all available to start but we have a feeling the manager is going to choose Phil Foden on the right-hand side. Southgate did not use Foden against the Czech Republic so as not to risk him picking up another yellow card. But now that he is available, the City prodigy will start.
Harry Kane is the obvious choice up front but the manager has the option of Dominic Calvert-Lewin if the game heads into extra time.
