Analysis and predictions for England vs Albania: The Three Lions roar.
The World Cup qualifying match between England and Albania will take place at 1:45 AM on March 22nd. Nghe An Newspaper analyzes the teams' form, provides football commentary, and predicts the score.
Latest England vs Albania team news
Thomas Tuchel's first England squad has produced a number of surprises, with Ajax midfielder Jordan Henderson being recalled and Dan Burn, Newcastle United's hero in the EFL Cup final, finally making the list.
As usual, the initial squad list has been changed as Cole Palmer has withdrawn to continue testing the injury he sustained before Chelsea's recent defeat to Arsenal in the Premier League; he has been replaced by Morgan Gibbs-White, who has been in impressive form this season.
While it remains unclear exactly how Tuchel will set up his team, Jordan Pickford is certain to make his 74th appearance in goal, and it has been confirmed that Harry Kane will continue to wear the captain's armband.
Since Kane made his World Cup qualifying debut in September 2016, only Robert Lewandowski (25) and Cristiano Ronaldo (21) have scored more goals than him in European qualifiers, with 17 goals in 14 matches. The Bayern Munich striker has also been directly involved in 6 goals in 2 matches against Albania.
Meanwhile, the visiting team will be led by Atalanta BC captain Berat Djimsiti, one of seven players currently playing in Italy included in coach Sylvinho's 26-man squad.
Another Serie A veteran, Elseid Hysaj of Lazio, will be absent due to injury, along with Mario Mitaj of Al-Ittihad, who has just undergone hip surgery.
The two main strikers, Armando Broja and Rey Manaj, were both absent from the November training camp but have returned to the squad this time and will compete for a starting spot in the attack.
Latest predicted lineups for England vs Albania
Older brother:
Pickford; Walker, Guehi, Colwill, Lewis-Skelly; Henderson, Rice; Foden, Bellingham, Rashford; Kane
Albania:
Strakosha; Balliu, Ismajli, Djimsiti, Aliji; Asllani, Ramadani; Asani, Bajrami, Muci; Manaj
Latest football match prediction: England vs Albania
After an impressive UEFA Nations League campaign, England will begin 2025 with their opening World Cup qualifying match, a tournament that will be held in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.
The qualifying matches will take place over five international tournaments between now and November, with only the top team from each of the 12 groups qualifying directly for the finals. The second-placed teams will have to participate in a play-off round.
Therefore, England will be looking to gain the upper hand in Group K this month, as they are one of the strong contenders for the World Cup title. These are also the Three Lions' first two matches under Thomas Tuchel: after hosting Albania on Friday, they will face Latvia in London three days later.
England's group also includes Serbia and Andorra, and they are expected to top the group thanks to their superior squad and excellent performance in recent World Cup qualifiers.
The Three Lions are currently unbeaten in their last 31 World Cup qualifying matches, winning 23 of them – the longest streak of any European team. Historically, they have only lost their opening match once, a defeat to Germany in October 2000, their last game at the old Wembley Stadium.
Furthermore, the team that won the 1966 World Cup has won all six previous encounters with Albania, with only Luxembourg (9 wins from 9 matches), San Marino (8 matches) and Malta (7 matches) having a more perfect head-to-head record.
Albania have only scored one goal against England in six encounters, and their most recent meeting ended in a 0-5 defeat in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, with a hat-trick from Harry Kane.
While England earned promotion to the UEFA Nations League this season, Albania were relegated to League C after losing to Ukraine in their final match in November.
In a closely contested group, Albania not only lost their chance for promotion at the last minute, but that 1-2 defeat also led to their bitter relegation.
Nevertheless, they will have the opportunity to restart their World Cup qualifying campaign with the hope of securing a place in the finals for the first time.
Although Albania has participated in two of the last three European Championships, they have yet to realize their dream of reaching the world stage. Their goal in the coming months is to secure a place in the top two of Group K.
However, Albania has never won an official match against a team in the FIFA top 10, losing 17 out of 19 encounters. So, while they may not expect to get points against England, Sunday's match against Andorra will be an unmissable opportunity to secure a victory.
Latest England vs Albania score prediction
Based on the above football analysis, we and leading football websites worldwide have provided our predictions for the match.England vs Albaniaas follows:
- Sportsmole:England 3-1 Albania
- WhoScore:England 3-0 Albania
- Our newspaper predicts:England 3-0 Albania
When and where can I watch England vs Albania live?
To watch the England vs Albania match live in the World Cup qualifiers, taking place at 1:45 AM on March 22nd, viewers can tune in to the following channels:K+ Sport,K+PMor online sports channels. We hope you enjoy watching football.
