Comments and predictions for England vs Albania: The Three Lions roar

Latest England vs Albania team information

Thomas Tuchel's first England squad has thrown up a few surprises, with Ajax midfielder Jordan Henderson recalled and Newcastle United's EFL Cup final hero Dan Burn finally included.

As usual, there was a change to the initial squad as Cole Palmer withdrew to undergo further tests on the injury he picked up before Chelsea's recent Premier League defeat to Arsenal; he was replaced by Morgan Gibbs-White, who has been in impressive form this season.

While it remains unclear how Tuchel will line up, Jordan Pickford is certain to make his 74th appearance in goal, and it has been confirmed that Harry Kane will continue as captain.

Since Kane made his World Cup qualifying debut in September 2016, only Robert Lewandowski (25) and Cristiano Ronaldo (21) have scored more goals in European qualifying, with 17 in 14 games. The Bayern Munich striker has also been directly involved in six goals in his two appearances against Albania.

Meanwhile, the visitors will be led by Atalanta BC captain Berat Djimsiti, one of seven Italy-based players included in coach Sylvinho's 26-man squad.

Another Serie A veteran, Lazio's Elseid Hysaj, will miss out through injury, along with Al-Ittihad's Mario Mitaj, who has undergone groin surgery.

Two key strikers, Armando Broja and Rey Manaj, were both absent during the training camp in November but have returned to the team this time and will compete for a starting position in attack.

Latest expected lineup 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 commentary England vs Albania

After an impressive end to their UEFA Nations League campaign, England begin 2025 with their opening World Cup qualifier, which will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Qualifying matches take place over five international windows between now and November, with only the top team from each of the 12 groups advancing directly to the finals. Runners-up will have to take part in a play-off round.

England will therefore be looking to take the lead in Group K this month, as they are among the favourites to win the World Cup. These are also the Three Lions’ first two games under Thomas Tuchel: after hosting Albania on Friday, they 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 now unbeaten in their last 31 World Cup qualifiers, winning 23 of them – the longest such run of any current European team. They have only lost their opening game once in their history, that defeat to Germany in October 2000, the last game at the old Wembley.

Furthermore, the 1966 world champions have won all six previous meetings with Albania, with only Luxembourg (9 wins from 9), San Marino (8) and Malta (7) having a better head-to-head record.

Albania have scored just one goal against England in six meetings, and their most recent meeting saw them lose 5-0 in a 2022 World Cup qualifier, with Harry Kane scoring a hat-trick.

While England secured promotion from this season's UEFA Nations League, 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 of promotion at the last minute, but that 1-2 defeat also resulted in their bitter relegation.

However, they will have the chance to restart their World Cup qualifying campaign in the hope of qualifying for the finals for the first time.

Although Albania have featured in two of the last three Euros, they have yet to realise their dream of reaching the world stage. Their aim in the coming months is to secure a top two spot in Group K.

However, Albania have never won a competitive match against a team in the FIFA top 10, losing 17 of their 19 encounters. So they may not be expected to pick up a point against England, but Sunday's game against Andorra is an unmissable opportunity to get a win.

Latest England vs Albania score prediction

Based on the above football comments, we and the world's leading football sites have given the results of 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 to watch England vs Albania live?

To watch the England vs Albania match live in the World Cup qualifiers taking place at 1:45 a.m. on March 22, viewers can watch onK+ Sport,K+PMor online sports channels. Wish you have fun watching football.