Good evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's international friendly between England and France at Wembley Stadium. Initially penned in as a warm-up match for next summer's Euro 2016 tournament, the game itself is of secondary importance tonight following the tragic events in Paris four days ago, when at least 129 lost their lives in a series of coordinated terrorist attacks. The French Football Federation, and the players themselves, have decided to take part in tonight's game as a show of defiance and solidarity, and it is bound to be an emotional occasion for the visitors in particular. Let's start with a look at the two teams chosen for the contest...

ENGLAND STARTING XI: Hart; Clyne, Cahill, Stones, Gibbs; Dier, Alli, Barkley, Rooney, Sterling; Kane

ENGLAND SUBS: Smalling, Butland, Jones, Walker, Bertrand, Shelvey, Mason, Lingard, Lallana, Heaton

We will get to the France team when it is revealed, but first what can we make of that England side? Well, it is certainly a young one named by Roy Hodgson, no doubt with Euro 2016 in the back of his mind. However, his hand has also been forced in no small way by a string of injuries to players who would otherwise be very much in contention for a starting spot. The Three Lions are missing as many as 17 players who would consider themselves in with a shout of making the squad right now.

Of the players chosen, though, only four retain their place from the defeat to Spain on Friday night. Joe Hart is one of those, despite there being some speculation that he might miss out in favour of the in-form Jack Butland tonight. Hart is likely to still be the number one come next summer's tournament, however, so it makes sense for him to stay between the sticks, even if it is a completely new back four in front of him this evening.

Hodgson was always likely to make changes, but there is also an argument for him to settle on a defensive unit and play them together as much as possible before Euro 2016. His decision to change all four of his players at the back suggests that he has not yet decided who his best quartet are, particularly in the middle. Smalling and Jones played there against Spain and had decent enough games, but tonight it is Stones and Cahill who get the nod. Clyne replaces Walker on the right, while Gibbs comes in for Bertrand on the opposite flank.

It will be a special day for Eric Dier as he makes his full England debut after coming on as a sub against Spain last time out, while his club teammate Dele Alli also gets a start in the deeper midfield role that he has been occupying for Spurs lately. Further forward, Barkley and Sterling both retain their places in the side, and both are players who are expected to be key for their country by the time Euro 2016 comes along.

Kane is the final player to retain his place from the match against Spain, but he will have different support in the shape of Wayne Rooney tonight. The skipper came off the bench for his 108th cap on Friday, and will lead the team out tonight to overtake Bobby Moore in the all-time appearance ranks for his country - only Peter Shilton, Steven Gerrard and David Beckham have worn the Three Lions more often. His form has been heavily scrutinised this season, but he has five goals in his last five games for England at Wembley.

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FRANCE STARTING XI: Lloris; Digne, Koscielny, Varane, Sagna; Schneiderlin, Cabaye, Matuidi; Ben Arfa, Martial, Gignac

As for France, Didier Deschamps has made five changes to the side that beat Germany last time out, although that result was of course completely overshadowed by the events in Paris. Lassana Diarra and Antoine Griezmann both had family members directly involved in the attacks, and as a result neither of them start tonight, although they have both remained with the squad and travelled to London for the game.

There are a number of players who ply their trade in the Premier League on show for Les Bleus tonight, including Hugo Lloris between the sticks, who will be looking to keep club teammate Kane at bay. Man City's Bacary Sagna could start on the left, with Lucas Digne replacing Evra in the side, but Koscielny and Varane both retain their places. There is no Paul Pogba, so Schneiderlin, Cabaye and Matuidi start in midfield.

Manchester United's Anthony Martial is among the attacking players having made a promising start to life at Old Trafford following his blockbuster summer move. He will be joined in what is expected to be a front three by Hatem Ben Arfa, who may feel like he has a point to prove having seen his time in England come to something of an unsavoury end following fall-outs with Newcastle and Hull. Gignac, who scored France's second goal against Germany, makes up the front trio.

All of the French players were reportedly given the option to miss tonight's game by manager Didier Deschamps, but they unanimously decided to play in a show of solidarity that should be applauded. There have been questions as to whether it is the right decision for the game to go ahead, but sport can often bring people together and playing this match tonight is as much about sending out a message as anything else.

There will, of course, be a minute's silence before kickoff this evening, and in an attempt to continue the theme of solidarity, the words of French national anthem La Marseillaise will be shown on the big screen to help England fans sing along too. It will also be sung after England's national anthem in a change of protocol. Many fans have shown their desire to support the French team coming over, with thousands of tickets being sold since the attacks on Paris and fewer than 100 being returned.

It goes without saying that there will be a heightened security presence in and around Wembley this evening, with armed police in attendance at the game. Belgium's friendly with Spain scheduled for tonight has been called off, however, while the match between Germany and Netherlands was also cancelled at late notice this evening for security reasons. The atmosphere is bound to be sombre and tense given the recent events, but that hasn't stopped Prince William and David Cameron from choosing to attend the game as a show of support.

French president Francois Hollande was among those inside the Stade de France on Friday when explosions were clearly audible from outside. Play continued, and it was only later that the horrifying truth of the situation came to light, with suicide bombers detonating their vests, reportedly after being refused entry into the stadium, where thousands of supporters were watching France face Germany.

The result of that match was, of course, rendered meaningless, but in football terms France do seem to be on track to give a good account of themselves at Euro 2016. It has been a mixed 2015 for them on the pitch so far, but they come into tonight's game in fine form, winning each of their last five games and boasting a 100% record so far this season. That run did follow three defeats in the space of four games, however, which included a shock loss to Albania in June.

Having qualified for Euro 2016 automatically as hosts, France have not played a competitive fixture since their World Cup quarter-final defeat to Germany some 17 months ago. However, they have played 15 friendlies since then, and their record is a good one with 10 victories and just three defeats. As mentioned, the loss to Albania was a low point, but they have also beaten the likes of Spain, Portugal (twice) and Germany in that time. Those three teams, plus the two on show tonight, are all in Pot One for the Euro 2016 draw next month.

France have only lost two of their last 10 games away from home, one of which was that defeat to eventual champions Germany at last summer's World Cup in Brazil. That Albania defeat pops up again as the other, but that very much seems to be an anomaly of a result, despite coming in a relatively poor run for the team. They have won six of those last 10 away matches, including three of the most recent four.

It will prove to be another tricky evening for England, then, after they were brought back down to Earth against Spain on Friday. England fans will know all too well of the cautious optimism that grows and grows before each major tournament, eventually peaking in a crescendo when they actually believe the Three Lions are capable of winning the whole thing. That optimism looked to be founded on safer foundations than many recent tournaments this time around, but they were outclassed by Spain on Friday.

The 2-0 scoreline was certainly not a disastrous one for England, and the fact that both goals came in the final 20 minutes suggests that England were very much in the game. They were to some extent, and Hodgson can point to a number of shooting opportunities they created as proof that they could have come away with something. However, even accounting for all of England's injuries and youth, Spain simply looked a class apart and, while it took a wonder goal from Mario Gaspar to break the deadlock, there is little doubt that Spain deserved it.

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Matches like the one against Spain may be a little disheartening to England fans, but they are exactly the reason why Hodgson has arranged a number of high-profile friendlies in the build-up to next summer's tournament. Following this double-header against the European champions and France, they take on Germany and Netherlands in March in two more testing fixtures. They haven't beaten a side of that calibre since a 2-1 victory over Brazil in February 2013, and if they are to achieve any success in France next summer then they will need to be well versed against the best sides.

In truth, there was simply not enough competition for England during qualifying. Switzerland went into it as one of the top-10 teams in the world, but that ranking flattered them a little and England saw them off away from home in their very first qualifying match. They went on to make it 10 wins from 10, achieving a perfect qualification record for the first time in their history and only the sixth time any country has managed it in European Championship qualifying.

Not only that, but England boasted the best goal difference throughout qualifying with +28, conceded only three goals in their 10 games - only Romania let in fewer - and scoring 31 times, a tally only bettered by Poland. Their defence has been particularly impressive since their exit from the World Cup, with Roy Hodgson's side keeping 11 clean sheets in their last 16 matches and only letting in their first goals of the season against Spain on Friday.

That loss to Spain also ended a 15-game unbeaten run and five-match winning streak for England, although their record in friendlies is not so great. Friday's defeat was their first in nine friendlies, but they have now won just two of their last seven, drawing four. They are yet to win a friendly in 2015, and tonight is their final chance.

Their home form has been formidable of late, though. They have won their last eight games in a row at Wembley - their best record since a run of 10 under Fabio Capello - with their last defeat coming at the hands of Germany in November 2013. That match also saw the last time an opposition player scored past England here, with the only goal since being a Jordan Henderson own goal. England have, therefore, kept seven clean sheets in their last eight home outings, including in each of their last three home friendlies.

PREDICTION: We're 10 minutes from kickoff at Wembley, which means that it is time for a prediction! The result itself is unlikely to make too many headlines given the circumstances that surround the game, and it is unlikely that either side will be as focused on getting the win as usual. England's record at home is very impressive of late, but France are in fine form themselves, so I can see the two teams cancelling each other out in a 1-1 draw.

France actually have a fantastic record against England in recent years, winning four and losing none of their last six meetings. England's last victory came all the way back in June 1997, when Alan Shearer's late strike handed them a 1-0 win in a warm-up tournament for the 1998 World Cup. England have only scored four goals in the six meetings since then, and never more than one in a game.

France did not win any of their first seven visits to Wembley, but their recent record is much better here. They have emerged with the victory on their last two trips to London to face England, winning in 1999 and 2010. That most recent visit saw Karim Benzema and Mathieu Valbuena put the French into a 2-0 lead before Peter Crouch got a consolation goal late on.

The most recent meeting between these two sides came in the group stages of Euro 2012, and it was honours even on that occasion as goals from Joleon Lescott and Samir Nasri saw both sides take a point.

The national anthems have now been sung, with the French one being passionately belted out but French and English fans alike, with the Wembley arch lit up in red white and blue for the visitors. It is a unique occasion full of emotion, but matters on the field are just about to get started now.

First of all, the players dot themselves around the centre circle, French and English side by side, for a minute's silence in memory of those affected by Friday's terrorist attacks in Paris.

KICKOFF: England get us underway on this poignant occasion, and in truth it is tough to envision what sort of game we have ahead of ourselves here.

Decent enough start to the match from both sides as they enjoy spells in possession. France don't look like they will be closing down England quite as readily as Spain did on Friday, which should make things easier for the hosts.

I mentioned how young this England side was earlier, and it is actually their youngest since 1959. Their midfield trio alone contains to 21-year-olds and a teenager.

SHOT! The first shot of the match comes from the visitors as they break quickly following an England attack. The ball is fed to Cabaye, who is given plenty of space to run into before firing a long-range effort well over the crossbar.

Almost a gift for England as Lloris gives a clearance straight to Harry Kane - he must still be thinking that he is playing in the white of Tottenham! Kane looks to drill one in to Rooney inside the box, but Varane is there to spare his keeper's blushes.

Stones looks to bring the ball out from defence for England, only to be caught in possession just inside the French half. The visitors immediately break quickly once again, with Ben Arfa leading the charge, but when the ball eventually breaks to Gignac, he sees his shot blocked.

Almost a chance for England as Clyne comes forward down the right, managing to get a low pass into the box after failing to beat Digne. Rooney is alive to the loose ball and takes a touch, but Lloris is also alert and comes out to thwart the England skipper.

Decent period of possession for France here as they knock the ball about patiently. Most of it is coming in areas that aren't harmful to England, but when they do get into the final third they look to up the tempo a little.

Lloris again has to be quick off his line, but there are few goalkeepers better than him at doing that. Clyne is involved again down the right, first finding Barkley on the edge of the box before looking to get on the end of a through-ball from Sterling, but Lloris is there to smother the ball.

SAVE! Clyne struggles at the other end here, though, as Martial shows the first glimpse of how dangerous he can be. He lines Clyne up before showing a good turn of pace to cut inside, but his low effort is relatively comfortable for Hart down to his left.

Great chance for England to break with numbers! Sterling wins the ball back and suddenly the hosts find themselves with five players racing forward against two blue shirts. Kane slows things down a little but then picks out a good pass across to an open Alli, whose touch lets him down as the chance goes begging.

Alli, Kane and Sterling combine on the edge of the France box before the latter flicks the ball up against the hand of Schneiderlin. Free kick to the hosts in a very good position here...

SAVE! Rooney pulls rank to take it himself and he clears the wall, but it is fairly central and Lloris only has to take one step to his right before making a very comfortable save.

France are passing the ball about nicely so far in this one, which should be a good test for England. Hodgson's side were used to dominating the ball in qualifying but, just as against Spain on Friday, this is a different challenge for the players tonight, which is exactly what the friendly was designed for.

This match is yet to really get going so far, which was perhaps to be expected. Both sides are willing to commit men forward, but neither have been able to create a clear goalscoring chance so far.

Clyne has been heavily involved down that right flank so far, and he is getting forward really well. However, his final ball has left a lot to be desired so far, and if he can sort that out then it should be a source of some joy for the hosts.

Patient play from England eventually sees Alli break forward down the right channel before winning a corner. Cahill rises highest to meet the subsequent delivery, but France are able to deal with his knockdown and clear the danger.

CHANCE! The clearest chance of the night so far falls to the hosts, and it is Rooney who is close to extending his goalscoring record for his country. Kane feeds a pass out to the skipper, who finds himself in space in the right channel. Koscielny is isolated and Rooney sends him one way with a body swerve, only to lash his left-footed effort narrowly off target.

France make a good break at the other end as Ben Arfa pokes the ball through for the run of Cabaye, but Hart is out quickly to beat the Palace man to the ball. He can't quite collect it at the first attempt, but is quick to react and beat Ben Arfa to the second ball.

France are content to get bodies behind the ball when England have possession, with the visitors' plan to counter quickly when they win the ball back. Both teams have seen a decent amount of possession, though, with a good chunk of that coming in the opposition half.

Confident play from Varane, who twists and turns in possession and keeps his composure to pick out a fine crossfield pass to a fellow blue shirt. He is likely to be a key player for Les Bleus in Euro 2016 if he can stay fit.

Oh my word, what a way to mark your first England start! A maiden international goal is something a player never forgets, but this one is more memorable than most from Dele Alli. The Tottenham man does well to win a 50-50 with Schneiderlin in midfield before working the ball out to the right. He gets it back quickly and brings it forward before unleashing a magnificent strike past a helpless Lloris into the top corner.

SAVE! Kane looks to join his Tottenham teammate on the scoresheet against his other clubmate Lloris, but his snapshot from a difficult angle is parried away by Lloris at the front post.

Hart is forced into a low stop at the other end, but it is England who are on top right now. They have momentum with them at the moment and they won't want this half to end.

CHANCE! Another chance for England just before half time as they break forward with pace through Sterling down the left. He has men in support, but opts to go alone and eventually sees his effort deflected wide of the far post.

From the resulting corner the ball is flicked on towards the far side of the area, where Dier plants his header a few yards wide of the target.

The first half comes to an end at Wembley, and it has been a positive 45 minutes from both sides despite a relative lack of clear-cut chances. Both teams have looked to get forward and play attacking football when they have been in possession, but it is England who go into the break with the advantage courtesy of a special strike with just over five minutes remaining in the half.

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Dele Alli was the man to get the goal, his first in an England shirt on his full debut for his country. It was a particularly memorable one from the Tottenham youngster, who began the move with a crunching 50-50 challenge on Schneiderlin to win the ball in midfield. He then got the ball back and unleashed a brilliant strike past his club teammate Lloris and into the top corner. The effort did take a slight deflection off Koscielny, but take nothing away from the strike.

It is England who have enjoyed the best chances of the match so far, with Rooney enjoying the first clear one just after the half-hour mark. The skipper found himself in space in the right channel and only had Koscielny to beat. He managed to earn himself a yard to go for goal, but his powerful strike was a little wild and swerved narrowly wide of the target.

Sterling also had a chance late on with a deflected strike that bounced just wide as England ended the half on top following Alli's strike. Kane also tested Lloris in that period, while the French skipper almost handed England a gift early in the match when his clearance went straight to Kane, who was unable to take advantage.

France have looked to break in numbers whenever possible, but their threat to Joe Hart's goal has been pretty limited thus far. Martial has had arguably the best attacking moment for the visitors, cutting inside and testing Hart with a low drive, although it was a fairly straightforward save for the England number one. Hart has had one other routine stop to make, while Cabaye blazed an early effort over the bar from range.

KICKOFF: France get us back underway for the second half, and the visitors have made a couple of changes at half time with Paul Pogba and Kingsley Coman being introduced in place of Matuidi and Ben Arfa. England have also made one change, with Jack Butland making his Wembley debut in place of Hart.

England start the second half just as they finished the first, doubling their lead with barely two minutes on the clock since the restart. Alli again does really well in midfield, winning the ball off Pogba before releasing Sterling down the left. The wingers hangs a fine ball over towards the back post for Rooney, who fires his volley through Lloris. The France keeper should have done better in truth, but it is goal number 51 for England for Rooney nonetheless.

Alli has had a real impact on this game. He is unlikely to have been given a chance had England not had such an extensive list of injuries in the recent international breaks, but he is certainly taking his opportunity.

CLOSE! Very nearly a third for England as Harry Kane fires a brilliant strike that swerves inches wide of the top corner, with Lloris once again rendered a mere spectator. That one would have rivalled Alli's had it flown in!

Brilliant defending from, guess who? Dele Alli, of course! Martial dances his way into the England box and none of the white shirts seems able to get a foot in. The United man eventually looks to go for goal, but Alli is there to make a crucial challenge.

Coman weighs in with some good defending of his own here, showing great pace to not only keep up with Sterling after the Man City winger had robbed Sagna of possession, but actual overtake England's speedster and win a free kick.

FRANCE SUBS: A big reception for Lassana Diarra here as, just four days after losing his cousin in the terror attacks, he comes on to replace Cabaye. Olivier Giroud is also introduced in place of Gignac.

CLOSE! Pogba almost comes up with his own moment of magic to drag France back into this game. He sends Alli the wrong way with a nice bit of movement before curling an effort towards the top corner that lands on the roof of the net with Butland beaten.

France are enjoying a decent spell here, spending plenty of time in possession as they look to get themselves back into this match. England can be very happy with their performance over the first hour of this game, though.

Here is a shot of Wayne Rooney volleying home England's second goal of the afternoon, just minutes into the second half. It was his 51st international goal - the only active European players with more are Robbie Keane, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo.

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CHANCE! Huge chance for France to get a goal back, and it is beautifully crafted by the visitors. Following some patient play, Martial ups the tempo by darting into the box and feeding the ball to Pogba. The Juventus midfielder brilliantly back-heels the ball back into Martial's path, but Butland makes a very good save to deny the United man.

FRANCE SUB: That proves to be Martial's last action as he is replaced by Antoine Griezmann - another of the France players to be directly affected by the terror attacks on Friday.

ENGLAND SUB: The hosts also make a change, and it is a former Liverpool player replaced by a current one as Adam Lallana comes on for Sterling.

A strange moment here as play is stopped due to a banner being blown onto the field, just as England were setting up to take a corner. Butland helps a steward to remove it, and England's corner comes to nothing.

Pogba may have been caught in possession for England's second goal, but since then he has been very impressive for France. He really is giving England something to think about, and with him on the field France are very much still in this one.

Very nearly a chance for France as Giroud and Coman link up to feed the ball towards Griezmann, but the Atletico Madrid man just can't take the ball in his stride and England are able to clear the danger.

Coman has also looked lively since his introduction at the break, but it is clear that he is not quite as close to the finished article as Pogba. This time he jinks his way inside to create space to shoot, but his wild effort is a long way off target.

This has been a vastly improved performance from the one we saw against Spain on Friday. More than anything, England have been a lot more composed in possession, although they have been subjected to less pressure on the ball than they were in Alicante.

ENGLAND SUBS: Two more changes for the hosts as Kane and Barkley are replaced by Ryan Bertrand and Jonjo Shelvey.

FRANCE SUB: The visitors also make a change, with Moussa Sissoko replacing Schneiderlin for the final stages of this match.

It is looking as though England will see this one out right now, with France struggling to create anything of real danger to Butland's goal at the moment. It has been an impressive display from a very young English team.

The hosts are managing this game well at the moment, keeping the ball in the closing stages to prevent France from building any sort of momentum. We may not be able to read too much into this one as Friday's events are sure to have affected France's performance, but from an English standpoint this has been an encouraging display.

ENGLAND SUB: A late change for the hosts sees Alli depart to be replaced by Phil Jones.

Pogba, who has been France's best player since coming on, tries to add what would surely be only a consolation now as he turns his man on the edge of the area and drills a powerful strike off target.

There will be two added minutes at the end of this match.

Jonas Eriksson brings an end to proceedings at Wembley, and it is England who emerge victorious courtesy of a 2-0 triumph over France. The result was always going to be of secondary importance tonight, however, and the show of solidarity from both English and French fans was the main thing tonight, in addition to the strength shown by the French players in particular to participate.

Ultimately, though, it will go down in the record books as an England victory as they bring an end to France's five-match winning streak. It is tough to read too much into a night like this, with England depleted and well short of the side that is expected to start the opening game of Euro 2016, while French minds would have understandably been elsewhere. However, judging it only purely what transpired on the field, it was a good performance from the hosts and should certainly serve to build up optimism again following the defeat to Spain.

The goal of the game has to go to Dele Alli, who opened his England account in style with a thunderous strike that flew past a helpless Lloris and into the top corner. Alli had helped in the build-up to that too with a crunching tackle, and it was his hard work to win the ball back that sparked the second goal as well. Ge robbed Pogba of possession to release Sterling, whose cross was volleyed home by Wayne Rooney at the back post right at the start of the second half.

That is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole on what was a sombre, but also defiant occasion at Wembley. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction, analysis and player ratings. From me, though, it is goodbye for now.