With a routine path to Qatar 2022 now firmly in their sights, England return to Wembley for World Cup 2022 Qualifying action against Hungary on Tuesday night.
The Three Lions produced a five-star performance to ease past Andorra on Saturday evening, while their visitors succumbed to a 1-0 defeat to Albania last time out.
Match preview
© Reuters
While a stadium fire threatened the postponement of England's clash with Andorra on Saturday, the Three Lions were the ones to extinguish any fleeting Pyrenees hopes of a World Cup Finals appearance with a straightforward 5-0 win on the plastic pitch.
Gareth Southgate's youthful and attacking lineup saw Ben Chilwell, Bukayo Saka, Tammy Abraham, James Ward-Prowse and Jack Grealish all find the back of the net at the weekend, with some of the Three Lions' fringe players certainly staking claims for more regular roles.
With 19 points gleaned from seven matches in Group G, England have cemented their position at the top of the rankings with a healthy four-point lead over Albania and - barring a collapse of mammoth proportions - will book their tickets to Qatar next month.
Since that fateful evening against Italy at Wembley, England have scored 14 and conceded just one in four World Cup Qualifying battles, with September's 1-1 draw with Poland proving to be little more than a minor setback en route to another Finals tournament.
Furthermore, the Three Lions are on a remarkable streak of 12 successive World Cup Qualifying victories on home soil, while they have not lost such a game at Wembley since a 1-0 defeat to Germany in 2000, making Hungary's task all the more implausible.
© Reuters
Not even Hungary - the team that won the hearts of the Euro 2020 neutrals with dogged performances against France and Germany - were safe from surprise package Albania on Saturday, as Marco Rossi's side fell to a 1-0 defeat to their rivals.
Chelsea's Armando Broja struck the only goal with 10 minutes remaining as Hungary's Qatar 2022 hopes suffered another bitter blow, and Rossi's men are now rank outsiders to pip Albania or Poland to second spot and keep their World Cup aspirations alive.
After suffering their third defeat in four qualification matches, Hungary sit fourth in the rankings - four points behind Poland and five adrift of fifth-placed Albania - meaning that they cannot rise any higher up the table no matter what transpires on Tuesday evening.
Not since 1986 have Hungary qualified for the World Cup Finals, and that barren streak is set to be extended barring a miraculous turnaround in the three games that remain, but their victory over Andorra on September 9 represents their only win from their last eight in all tournaments.
England eased to a 4-0 win on Hungarian turf last month - although the encounter was largely overshadowed by incidences of racist abuse from a section of the home crowd - and it has been 59 years since the visitors' last victory against the Three Lions, which came at the 1962 World Cup.
- W
- W
- W
- W
- D
- W
- W
- L
- W
- W
- D
- W
- W
- W
- L
- L
- W
- L
- D
- D
- L
- L
- W
- L
Team News
© Reuters
England manager Southgate understandably left most of his big-hitters in reserve against Andorra, and the Three Lions will revert to their strongest lineup in front of their own fans here.
Jordan Pickford is poised to replace Sam Johnstone in goal, while Kyle Walker and Tyrone Mings could both return to the rearguard in place of Kieran Trippier and Conor Coady, but Luke Shaw is more uncertain.
Declan Rice and Jordan Henderson are set to form the midfield duo in place of the injured Kalvin Phillips, while Grealish, Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling and Mason Mount should all earn recalls to the final third.
Hungary will be forced into a defensive change as Endre Botka will miss the trip to Wembley through suspension, so Adam Lang could deputise after Attila Fiola withdrew due to injury.
Rossi's side did not report any fresh injury concerns from Saturday's defeat but may make a tactical tweak or two after such a disappointing evening, with Szabolcs Schon hoping to reclaim his rightful place in the side over Daniel Salloi.
Laszlo Kleinheisler could also be reintroduced to the midfield at Wembley, while Janos Hahn was brought off the bench last time out and would provide a physical presence up top if selected.
England possible starting lineup:
Pickford; Walker, Stones, Mings, Chilwell; Rice, Henderson; Sterling, Mount, Grealish; Kane
Hungary possible starting lineup:
Gulacsi; Orban, At. Szalai, Lang; Nego, A. Nagy, Kleinheisler, Z. Nagy; Schon, Szoboszlai; Sallai
We say: England 3-0 Hungary
The despicable acts of some fans may have overshadowed England's romping win in Hungary last month, but on the pitch, Southgate's side were simply a class above and should have too much for their opponents with a well-rested first XI.
After such a bright start to their World Cup bid, Hungary have lost their golden touch since Euro 2020, and another Qualifying campaign is set to end in tatters for the visitors.
Top tip
Ben Knapton
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a England win with a probability of 60.55%. A draw had a probability of 22.2% and a win for Hungary had a probability of 17.23%.
The most likely scoreline for a England win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.07%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (11.22%) and 2-1 (9.82%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.56%), while for a Hungary win it was 0-1 (5.69%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 10.6% likelihood.
