England’s Euro campaign is back on the right track after recording a heart-stopping 2-1 win over Wales on Thursday. The Three Lions will look to sustain the momentum from that huge victory when they take on Slovakia in a pivotal Group B clash at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard this coming Monday.
Read on below for an in-depth breakdown of this critical clash and while you’re at it, you can check out our preview of Russia vs. Wales.
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England vs. Slovakia Preview
Where: Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Étienne
When: Monday, June 20, 3:00 PM ET
Line: England -145 vs. Slovakia +395, tie +215; total: 2.0 – view all Euro 2016 lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on England (-145)
England will head to their crunch clash with Slovakia with momentum on their side after recording a nerve-wracking 2-1 victory over Wales on Thursday. It was a huge bounce-back win for England who climbed into first place in the Group B table with four points to their name.
The dynamic duo’s performance rewarded manager Roy Hodgson’s decision to put four of his five strikers in the latter stages of the match against Wales. Marcus Rashford also excelled during his short stint on Wednesday as he became the youngest player to represent England – and the fifth youngest overall – at the European Championship (18 years and 228 days). They are expected to once again play a crucial part for England in their final group game against Slovakia.
A draw in this contest should be enough for England to see them through to the knock-out phase. For England to grab at least that result against Slovakia, they need to dominate the possession game once again. They controlled 70 percent of the possession in their win against Wales. That helped England establish a 20-8 advantage in shot attempts and a 5-2 edge in the shots on target department against Wales.
England will fancy their chances of beating Slovakia as they have fared extremely well against them of late. They are unbeaten in their last three matches with the Slovaks. England thrashed Slovakia, 3-0, in their last meeting in a friendly at Wembley back in 2009. Wayne Rooney scored twice in that contest.
The Three Lions are pegged at -200 to score first in this match.
Betting on Slovakia (+395)
Slovakia earned their first-ever European Championship victory by beating Russia, 2-1, on Wednesday. It was a huge win for the Slovaks who climbed into second place in the Group B standings alongside Wales. Vladimir Weiss and Marek Hamsik scored the winning goals for Slovakia who have tasted just one defeat in their last 10 matches.
It was totally an unexpected result for the Repre who only had 35 percent of the possession against the Russians. What helped the Slovaks’ cause, though, was their physical brand of play which successfully bogged down Russia’s vaunted offense. Thanks to their quick and aggressive style, the Slovakia repeatedly threatened Russia on the counter-attack. This was displayed into full effect in Hamsik’s spectacular goal in the first half.
Up next for Slovakia is a showdown with group leaders England. For the Slovaks to grab all three points and ensure qualification for the next round, they will need Hamsik to continue his excellent play. He is one of only two players in the Slovakia side with more than 10 international goals. Just like in their opening game against Wales, Hamsik had more touches than any of his team-mates in the win against Russia. He also won possession for Slovakia a whopping 12 times against the Russians.
Slovakia is pegged at +210 to score first in this match.
Writer’s Prediction
England (-145) eases past Slovakia, 2-0.
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