England kick off their 2022 World Cup campaign this afternoon as Gareth Southgate’s men take on Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha.
The Three Lions watched on as Ecuador beat hosts Qatar 2-0 on Sunday, knowing that they would be the second game of the tournament.
Southgate’s men will kick off Group B and the expectation is that England will pick up a win over Carlos Quieroz’s side.
Yet with a couple of dangerous strikers in Mehdi Taremi and Sardar Azmoun, as well as the acrobatic long-throw abilities of Milad Mohammadi, England must be wary of a shock.
England predicted lineup v Iran
Newcastle United goalkeeper Nick Pope has impressed this season but Southgate has trusted Jordan Pickford for years now and the Everton stopper looks likely to feature again today.
Much of the conversation has surrounded a back three or a back four and we’re predicting that Southgate will go with the latter against Iran.
That would likely see Harry Maguire partner John Stones in the heart of Southgate’s back four.
Kyle Walker isn’t fit so Kieran Trippier looks to be a strong bet at right back whilst Luke Shaw is the obvious option on the left.
Declan Rice will then be able to protect the back four whilst still being able to drive forward as he does for West Ham.
Jude Bellingham looks set to start in midfield after shining with Borussia Dortmund, with Chelsea star Mason Mount joining a midfield three.
That could be a 4-2-3-1 with Mount as a number 10, but we’ll back Bellingham and Mount to play box-to-box in a 4-3-3.
Harry Kane will lead the line and Raheem Sterling is likely to get the nod on the left flank despite his patchy Chelsea form this season.
The big decision comes on the right with Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka vying for a start.
The Telegraph claim that Arsenal star Saka is set to start ahead of Foden with the Manchester City star poised for a spot on the bench.
James Maddison and the aforementioned Walker are the only England squad members expected to miss out on the bench this afternoon.
England predicted lineup v Iran: Pickford; Trippier, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Rice, Bellingham, Mount; Saka, Sterling, Kane.
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