Football
England can breeze past Uruguay in World Cup prep
The final international break of the season is upon us, and the first of England’s two friendlies sees them take on Uruguay.
With his attention firmly focused on this summer’s World Cup, this is Thomas Tuchel’s final chance to assess his options and see how certain players perform in an England shirt.
The two friendlies could prove pivotal for World Cup squad selection, the first of which offers and opportunity for those on the cusp to prove themselves worthy of a seat on the plane.
Here, we preview how England vs Uruguay could play out.
With the World Cup just around the corner, the pressure is on for England boss Thomas Tuchel to put out the best side possible for this year’s tournament, and it looks like the German is experimenting with his potential World Cup squad in this round of international friendlies.
It has been confirmed that 11 out of the 35-man squad selected will not be joining the Three Lions squad at Wembley against Uruguay so they have an opportunity to rest from their heavy domestic schedules. This includes the likes of Nico O’Reilly who won City their first trophy of the season in their Carabao Cup clash against Arsenal on Sunday, as well as captain Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice. Possible players in the lineup include: Cole Palmer, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Tino Livramento and Dominic Solanke. Harry Maguire has also received his first England call up since September 2024.
Uruguay, who are currently placed 17th in the FIFA world rankings, will be making the journey to Wembley, where they will face the three lions on Friday 27th at 19:45. Marcelo Bielsa’s side are the underdogs going into this friendly with odds of 11/2. They haven’t had a run quite as consistent as England, with a loss and a draw in their last four games, but there’s no doubting the talent in the South American squad, with the likes of Federico Valverde and Darwin Nunez more than capable of giving England something to think about.
The Three Lions have had a good run with only one loss in their last ten games, but can they keep their winning streak alive with many of their top players resting?
It’s looking like it will be a close game with odds of 3/4 for under 2.5 goals scored in the 90 minutes, but will England be able to keep a clean sheet? It’s currently 4/6 on both teams not to score with England 5/4 to win to nil. When it comes to who could lead the attacking charge for England, Leeds United forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin is looking like a strong contender with odds of 11/10 for him to score anytime. He has had a good run this season at Leeds with ten goals and an assist so far.
If Uruguay do manage to score tomorrow, their front runner for a goal is former Liverpool forward Darwin Nunez, with odds of 15/4 to score at anytime. Nunez, who is now at Saudi Pro League team Al Hilal, has scored 13 goals in 36 appearances so far for Uruguay.
