Gareth Southgate and England are looking to make a statement after a largely disappointing draw against Scotland last week, as they take on current leaders the Czech Republic in their final Group D outing on Tuesday.
England have been underwhelming in both of their two games to date, though beating Croatia 1-0 in their opener, but are still likely to progress to the last-16, even with defeat.
The Three Lions will guarantee a place in the round of 16 with a draw, though that would see them finish second, while a win would propel Southgate’s side to the top of the group. Should Scotland fail to beat Croatia, England will qualify regardless of their result.
While Southgate will want to gain some momentum ahead of the last-16, winning the group would see England take on the runners-up from Group F, which would be one of France, Germany, Portugal or Hungary.
Meanwhile, a second-place finish would see England take on the runners-up from Group E, being Sweden, Slovakia, Spain or Poland, certainly an easier route on paper. With a place in the last-16 not yet officially confirmed, England don’t have the luxury of playing tactically, however.
With the clash quickly approaching, Sportsmail takes you through the all-important information.
England’s disappointing draw against Scotland means they still have work to do in Group D
When is Czech Republic vs England?
The final group game between England and the Czech Republic will take place on Tuesday, June 22.
The match will start at 8pm BST and will be held at Wembley Stadium, which will once again be at 25 per cent capacity.
Elsewhere, Group D rivals Croatia and Scotland will also go head-to-head in their final group game, with the match kicking off at the same time.
How to watch the match
Czech Republic vs England will be broadcast for free on ITV1 at ITV 2, with coverage starting at 7pm and 7.05pm respectively.
UK viewers will be able to stream the match online for free via the ITV Hub.
Sportsmail will also be running a live blog, so you can keep up-to-date with us.
Group D table, fixtures and results
None of the four nations are officially qualified as of yet, with Scotland still able to progress
Czech Republic’s Patrik Schick is the joint top-scorer in the tournament with three goals, including his stunning long-range effort against Scotland in their Group D opener
Surprisingly, it’s the Czech Republic who sit top of Group D with just one game to play, following their win over Scotland and draw with Croatia.
The top-two of England and the Czech Republic are all-but through, with four points most likely enough to qualify as one of the four-best third-placed teams as a minimum.
As stated, winning on Tuesday is the only way England can top the group, while a draw would see them progress as runners-up, with the Czech Republic finishing first.
Both Scotland and Croatia must get a win if they are to stand any chance at all.
Scotland gave themselves hope with their historic draw against the Three Lions, and they could still seal second-place if they beat Croatia, so long as the Czech Republic beat England, and so long as their goal difference is higher than Southgate’s side.
- June 13: England 1-0 Croatia
- June 14: Scotland 0-2 Czech Republic
- June 18: Croatia 1-1 Czech Republic
- June 18: England 0-0 Scotland
- June 22: Czech Republic vs England – 8pm
- June 22: Croatia vs Scotland – 8pm
England need their talisman to perform
Harry Kane is under pressure, having failed to score in either of England’s two games to date
The England captain has been substituted in both matches after failing to make an impact
One of the major talking points of the tournament has been the form of Harry Kane, who is yet to score – or even make an impression – in the first two games.
Much to the surprise of the fans, the Tottenham star has been substituted in both of England’s outings, first replaced by Jude Bellingham and then by Marcus Rashford.
Pundit Roy Keane has pondered whether the speculation surrounding Kane’s future has distracted the forward, while Jamie Carragher has revealed he wouldn’t start the 28-year-old on Tuesday, but rest him instead.
Kane has insisted neither injuries nor transfer speculation have impacted his game, though the news that Manchester City have expressed their intention to sign the forward in a £100million move is perhaps untimely to say the least.
Regardless, Southgate has already confirmed Kane will start from the off once more against the Czech Republic, insisting his overall game is just as important as his goals.
‘He is fundamental, not only to the goals he scores but the build-up play and everything else he brings,’ he said.
‘I know there will be a lot of questions being asked about him at the moment but he has been through that 100 times before.
‘I have answered that in this role several times in the past and he has come up with the goals that have won us the next games and I expect that to be the same moving forward.’
Team news
Phil Foden (left) will receive a suspension if he gets another yellow card, so could be rested, while there are calls for Jack Grealish (right) to get a starting role
Harry Maguire (centre) has declared himself fit, but he’s yet to get any minutes to date
The big news for England is that both Ben Chilwell and Mason Mount have been forced to isolate having met up with a covid-positive Billy Gilmour in the tunnel after England’s game against Scotland.
However, Southgate has refused to rule them out during his pre-match briefing as we await further news.
As stated, Southgate has also confirmed that Kane will play on Tuesday.
However, Southgate does have a decision to make regarding Phil Foden. Ian Wright was left furious after the youngster was taken off against Scotland, but with a yellow card to his name, another caution would see him suspended for the last-16 tie.
Additionally, there have been significant calls for Jack Grealish to start, on top of demands for Jadon Sancho to get some minutes.
Southgate rotated his full-backs against Scotland, and that’s a possibility once more.
Meanwhile, Harry Maguire could finally come into the side, but with two clean sheets from as many games, Tyrone Mings and John Stones could get the nod once more.
Czech Republic squad
Goalkeepers: Tomas Vaclik (Sevilla), Ales Mandous (Olomouc), Tomas Koubek (FC Augsburg).
Defenders: Jan Boril (Slavia Prague), Jakub Brabec (Viktoria Plzen), Vladimir Coufal (West Ham), Ondrej Celustka (Sparta Prague), Pavel Kaderabek (Hoffenheim), Tomas Kalas (Bristol City), Ales Mateju (Brescia), David Zima (Slavia Prague).
Midfielders: Antonin Barak (Hellas Verona), Vladimir Darida (Hertha Berlin), Adam Hlozek (Sparta Prague), Tomas Holes (Slavia Prague), Jakub Jankto (Sampdoria), Alex Kral (Spartak Moscow), Lukas Masopust (Slavia Prague), Jakub Pesek (Slovan Liberec), Tomas Soucek (West Ham), Petr Sevcik (Slavia Prague), Michal Sadilek (PSV Eindhoven).
Forwards: Michael Krmencik (Club Brugge), Tomas Pekhart (Legia Warsaw), Patrik Schick (Bayer Leverkusen), Matej Vydra (Burnley).
England squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Sam Johnstone (West Brom), Aarom Ramsdale (Sheffield United).
Defenders: Ben White (Brighton), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolves), Reece James (Chelsea), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Atletico Madrid), Kyle Walker (Manchester City).
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds), Declan Rice (West Ham).
Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Phil Foden (Man City), Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Raheem Sterling (Man City).
Czech Republic vs England: The odds
Though the Czech Republic come into the game as the Group D leaders, it will come as a surprise to few that England are the overwhelming favourites to come out on top on Tuesday.
England are favoured at 4/7 to prevail, while the Czech Republic are the underdogs at 7/1. Meanwhile, a draw is at 13/5.
*Odds as per Betfair and correct at the time of publication.