England will attempt to qualify for their first European Championship semi-final for 25 years when they face Ukraine at Euro 2020 on Saturday.
Having finished a 55-year sit tight for a knockout-tie triumph over Germany at a happy Wembley on Tuesday, Gareth Southgate’s side will confront the Czech Republic or Denmark at the public arena in the event that they win in Rome.After playing their initial four games at Wembley, Saturday’s match in Italy’s capital is England’s first away from home at Euro 2020.Covid travel limitations mean fans in the UK have been advised not to go to the game, so there are probably going to be more Ukraine fans in the Stadio Olimpico than England supporters.Southgate, who directed England to the semi-last of the World Cup in 2018, said: “Our players were accustomed to playing before no fans last season and making their own atmosphere.”You need authority on the contribute these minutes and we have some generally excellent leaders.”Should England win, they would arrive at the semi-finals of the European Championship interestingly since Euro 96.They are undefeated at Euro 2020 and still can’t seem to surrender a goal.Winger Bukayo Saka endured a “slight thump” in preparing on Friday yet other than that the Three Lions throw a tantrum squad.However, Southgate needs to conclude whether to keep the very firing line-up that played against Germany or make changes.He carried out a 3-4-3 development for the success against Germany and he should conclude whether to return to a four.Midfielder Jack Grealish went ahead as a substitute in that success with the score 0-0 preceding laying on the help for Harry Kane to make it 2-0 after Raheem Sterling had opened the scoring.Midfielder Mason Mount was an unused substitute after just barely finishing self-separation, and could get back to the side.Four players would miss an expected semi-last in the event that they get a yellow card against Ukraine, including safeguard Harry Maguire and midfielders Kalvin Phillips and Declan Rice.All three were reserved against Germany and a subsequent yellow would trigger a programmed boycott for the following game. Forward Phil Foden was reserved in the primary gathering game against Croatia yet didn’t play against Germany. “We will not settle on any choices dependent on yellow cards,” added Southgate. “It would be an affront to Ukraine.”Ukraine will be without forward Artem Besedin for around a half year subsequent to enduring a knee tendon injury in the last-16 win over Sweden.Captain Andriy Yarmolenko, who has scored two objectives in four games at Euro 2020, was constrained off in that game with an obvious physical issue yet is wanting to be fit.Yarmolenko is one of four players on a yellow card, with the other three Artem Dovbyk, who hit the 120th-minute victor against Sweden, Mykola Shaparenko and individual midfielder Serhiy Sydorchuk.Whatever occurs in Rome, Ukraine have effectively impacted the world forever by arriving at the knockout stage for the principal time.Managed by perhaps the best player – and 2004 Ballon d’Or champ – Andriy Shevchenko, they lost two of their three gathering games however progressed as outstanding amongst other four third-set countries at the 24-group tournament.They were associated with a sensational last-16 tie against Sweden, Artem Dovbyk scoring in added time in additional chance to set up a quarter-last with England.”We are here and this was our opportunity to change the future and we did it,” said previous Chelsea forward Shevchenko. “Britain are an extraordinary group, a ton of incredible players and an extraordinary director. It’s anything but a hard game for us.” Positioned 24th on the planet, 20 spots underneath England, they have beaten the Three Lions only once in seven endeavors, a 1-0 World Cup qualifying achievement in 2009.Ukraine’s group highlights two players who play for clubs in the Premier League – West Ham’s Yarmolenko and Oleksandr Zinchenko, who has won three Premier League titles, four League Cups and one FA Cup since joining Manchester City five years ago.Southgate said: “Ukraine have a danger with their advances and they have enormous sprit. They showed that against Sweden.”England have done well up until now. They’ve been mindful, yet it has worked.Ukraine got an extraordinary outcome against Sweden in the last round however the thing about this competition is that you are just pretty much as great as your most noticeably awful player.They have some generally excellent players, yet they have some conventional players too.England haven’t surrendered an objective yet and Southgate realizes his side will consistently get chances in games – a re-visitation of Wembley for the semi-last is alluring them.According to Simon Gleave, head of sports investigation at information organization Nielsen’s Gracenote, England are presently top choices to win Euro 2020.”Ukraine are the least positioned group to make it this far at Euro 2020 as they are as of now positioned 30th on the planet by Gracenote’s reality positioning,” said Gleave.”In our pre-competition figure, England were second top picks to win Euro 2020 with an expected shot at 13.6%.”Having arrived at the quarter-finals and with likely home benefit to come later in the opposition, this has developed to 26.5%, making England top choices to win Euro 2020.”
MATCH STATS
- Straight on
- Britain have lost only one of their seven gatherings with Ukraine in all rivalries (W4 D2), a 1-0 loss in October 2009 in a World Cup qualifier. The last two games between the sides have completed level, with this the main gathering since September 2013.
- Britain and Ukraine have met at a significant competition once previously, with the Three Lions winning 1-0 in the gathering phases of Euro 2012, because of a Wayne Rooney objective.
Ukraine
- Ukraine’s just past quarter-last debut in a significant competition finished in a 3-0 loss by Italy at the 2006 World Cup. Ukraine have won two of their last three European Championship matches, more than they had in their initial seven in the opposition (W1 L6).
- Ukraine’s West Ham winger Andriy Yarmolenko has either scored or helped five of Ukraine’s eight objectives at the European Championship.
- At Euro 2020, Ukraine have won two and lost two of their four matches. They have scored six objectives including two headers.
Britain
- Every one of England’s past three quarter-last matches at the European Championship have gone to additional time and punishments. In the wake of advancing from the first of these against Spain in 1996, England lost in punishment shootouts against Portugal in 2004 and Italy in 2012.
- The Three Lions are just the second side in European Championship history not to yield in any of their initial four rounds of a version of the competition, after Germany in 2016.
- Forward Raheem Sterling has scored three of England’s four objectives at Euro 2020 up until this point, while just two players have at any point scored more for England in a solitary version at the competition – Alan Shearer in 1996 (5) and Wayne Rooney in 2004 (4).
- Every one of the four of England objectives at Euro 2020 have come from inside the punishment region, including two headers.