Just reading the words “England vs Germany” is enough to make you shudder, right?
The Three Lions renew their rivalry with Die Mannschaft on Tuesday in what surely represents their best chance to beat Germany in a major international tournament in decades.
Gareth Southgate’s side might not have been at their best when they safely navigated out of Group D, but they got the job done comfortably and with three clean sheets from their three excursions, the England boss will be pleased with his side’s performances at Euro 2020 so far – despite the criticism he has received.
Meanwhile, Germany did well to get out of a group that included world champions France European champions Portugal, even if they only managed to make it as one of the best third places.
The big game is almost on its way, so here is a 90 min preview of the upcoming 16 match …
When is kick off? Tuesday 29 June, 17:00 (BST)Where is the match played? Wembley Stadium, LondonWhich TV channel is it on? BBC One (UK), fuboTV (USA)Who is the judge? Who has VAR service?
Mason Mount may return on Tuesday / Visionhaus / Getty Images
In one of the strangest stories to come out of the tournament so far, it remains to be seen if Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell will be available for Tuesday’s clash at Wembley.
The couple has been self-isolating after coming into contact with Chelsea teammate Billy Gilmour who later tested positive for coronavirus. Mount and Chilwell’s quarantine period does not end until Monday, but they will have trained while away from their teammates, so they should be fit to return.
Otherwise, the England manager has no new fitness problems to worry about, with Harry Maguire seeming to return to full fitness and Jordan Henderson is not far from having played 45 minutes last time.
Phil Foden rules out the victory over the Czech Republic, with Southgate keen to avoid making a second booking of the tournament that could suspend him against Germany, and he is likely to return to start XI.
Thomas Muller was able to return to start XI / Soccrates Images / Getty Images
Joachim Low’s side is implied that they have not received any more injuries after their 2-2 draw with Hungary on Wednesday, which means that we will probably see a very similar starting XI to the one that the German boss put in his last group F -excursion.
Thomas Muller was only fit enough to be named as a replacement for the match with Hungary after suffering a knee injury, but he got 25 minutes in the second half and should therefore be fully fit to start at Wembley.
Jamal Musiala became the youngest player ever to play for Germany in a major international tournament on Wednesday night and we will surely see a few more of him against England. The youth came to Hungary may have just been short but he still had time to show us exactly what he can do.
England: Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Rice, Henderson, Mount; Sterling, Kane, Foden
Germany: Neuer; Ginter, Hummels, Rudiger; Kimmich, Gundogan, Kroos, Gosens; Gnabry, Havertz, Muller
Michael Owen scored a hat trick in a 2001 victory 5-1 / Ben Radford / Getty Images
One would think that Germany would be miles ahead of this one, but it turns out that there really is not much to distinguish between the two sides when compiling the results of their previous clashes.
Germany edged it slightly after winning 15 compared to England’s 13, while four of the competitions ended in a draw.
The last meeting of the two sides was one of the mentioned draws when they played a relatively uneventful 0-0 at Wembley 2017.
Gareth Southgate leads England against Germany on Tuesday / Chloe Knott – Danehouse / Getty Images
Although they did well to even get out of the group stage given the level of their opponents, Germany is far from the football powerhouse we have become accustomed to seeing over the years.
Meanwhile, England boast perhaps the most talented freight forwarder they have mentioned at a major tournament in a long time, so on paper they should be really confident – right?
You know it does not work that way.
Every single fiber tells us that man-to-man this England team is more than a match for the German team, but still it will somehow cross the line when it really matters.
Prediction: England 0-1 Germany
