England head to Rome for the next step in their bid to win Euro 2020 as they take on Ukraine on Saturday.
A 2-0 win over Germany, their first in a tournament knockout stage since the 1966 World Cup Final, has the county once again dreaming, with Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane dispatching the old foes in front of 41,000.
Playing away from Wembley for the first time in the tournament, it’ll be all eyes on the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday night, with the winner taking on the Czech Republic or Denmark for a place in the Final.
Preview
Ukraine lock horns with England at the Stadio Olimpico in the last quarter final match of the Euro 2020.
Both teams are looking to make history here, England a second time to the semifinal for European competitions and Ukraine hoping for their first ever appearance in the last four of a major tournament.
The Three Lions qualified for the quarter finals at the expense of Germany. The 2-0 win was nothing less than deserved as Southgate’s men controlled the game after the nervous first 10 minutes. It was the finishing that made the difference in the end, though they were far from few, England took theirs while Muller, Havertz and Werner agonizingly missed theirs.
Raheem Sterling who scored the opener took his tally to 3 goals from 4 games, while Harry Kane finally got one in, probably the first of many to come in the tournament. At this point, England remain as the only team to concede a goal, though Italy and Belgium conceded just 1 in the competition. However, Gareth Southgate tops any team in the lowest number of chances conceded.
Ukraine didn’t have it the easy way, they were huge underdogs against Sweden, yet combination of luck and hard work prevailed to clinch a winner at the end of 120 minutes of football. Manchester City’s Oleksandr Zinchenko was the man of the match as he scored his team’s first goal before setting up Artem Dovbyk for the winner deep in the added extra time of the extra time.
This is Ukraine’s first ever appearance at the last eight of a tournament and they have a chance to make history with their opponent being England.
Form Guide: Ukraine
Looking to put England’s dream to an end and continue their own story are Ukraine, who are in the quarter-finals of a major tournament for just the second time in their history. Ukraine were also placed in an interesting group, alongside North Macedonia, Austria and Netherlands, kicking off with a 3-2 defeat to the latter. Andriy Shevchenko’s men bounced back to beat North Macedonia 2-1 and, despite a 1-0 defeat to Austria in the final group game, Ukraine qualified as one of the best third-placed sides. Ukraine then won the battle of the blue and yellows in the last-16, beating Sweden 2-1 after extra-time thanks to a dramatic last-minute goal.
Form Guide: England
England went into Euro 2020 dreaming of football coming home, as the final is set to be held at Wembley – just the third time a major tournament has had its showpiece in London. The Three Lions were given an interesting group alongside Croatia, Scotland and Czech Republic and were expected to qualify with ease. They came through the group unscathed, beating Croatia and Czech Republic 1-0 while drawing with Scotland, topping Group D without conceding. Their prize for that was a clash with old rivals Germany at Wembley, a team they hadn’t beat in a major tournament since 1966. It was a tough game but England ultimately came through, beating Germany 2-0 to set up this trip to Rome.
How the match could go
The round of 16 is an indication of how things are spanning in this summer tournament and there are no easy games. However, this is England’s game to win and none the less this is a favorable fixture against a team way below their standards. But this will be the first game they play outside Wembley, though there will be no lack of support from the stands. With Harry Kane finally finding the back of the net and a reliable goal-getter in Raheem Sterling, we can bank on a convincing win for the Three Lions at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. At the same time, punters can take a chance on Ukraine’s brilliant attacking duo of Andriy Yarmolenko and Roman Yaremchuk to finally break an unless otherwise untested English defense.
Betting Tips and Predictions
England to win
England are yet to concede a single goal at Euro 2020 and will be confident they can shut out Ukraine in the quarter-finals. Ukraine have looked decent going forward but did fail to score in their final group game against Austria and are yet to come up against a side with such a strong defensive record like England. England haven’t conceded a goal in any of their last six international matches and have won all bar one of those encounters. Bet365 have 1.40 odds, Bet9ja have 1.43 and 1xbet have 1.48.
Under 2.5 goals
Five of the seven previous meetings between these two countries have produced under 2.5 goals, which includes each of their last four head-to-heads. Three of Ukraine’s last six 90-minute matches have produced under 2.5 goals and the same can be said for each of England’s last six fixtures, so you can see why we’re not predicting there to be many goals in this game. Bet365 have 1.72 odds, Bet9ja have 1.73 and 1xbet have 1.79.
Anytime Goal-scorer (Ukraine)
Andriy Yarmolenko
He may have struggled for West Ham, but Yarmolenko has scored 42 goals in 98 games for Ukraine and only Shevchenko has managed more. He has shone at Euro 2020 scoring two goals in four games and laying on an assist for Oleksandr Zinchenko during the last-16 win over Sweden. He has been somehow involved in almost all of their goals and he could be crucial again if Ukraine are to make the few chances they might have count. Bet9ja have 5.75 odds for him to score while Bet365 have 6.00
Oleksandr Zinchenko
Oleksandr Zinchenko has claimed he won’t fear playing his Manchester City teammates in England’s big game against Ukraine. The Blues’ Zinchenko opened the scoring for Ukraine in that game, although his nation needed extra time to score the decisive goal, winning 2-1 thanks to a 121st minute Artem Dovbyk strike. That goal ensured Ukraine progressed to the quarter-finals of the competition for the first time in their history and the City star will be more than fired up to do similar against familiar faces.Bet9ja have a massive 12.00 odds for him to score while Bet365 have it even better at 15.00.
Anytime Goal-scorer (England)
Harry Kane
Kane scoring his first goal of the Euros could transform his summer. He’s a player who needs confidence and he’s never done well with people on his back when he underperforms. However, he could be peaking right in time for the tournament and Kane does have a record of 35 goals in 58 games for his country. He’s coming off a season which saw him score 23 times in 35 Premier League games and we expect Kane to return to his best in this one. This Ukraine side are far from convincing and they’ve conceded in every match at the tournament so Kane should be able to find the net against them. Bet365 have 1.83 odds while Bet9ja have 2.25.
Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling has been the undeniable hero for England at Euro 2020 so far, scoring three of their four goals including two winners and the opener against Germany. He is just the fourth Englishman to net at least three goals in a single European Championship, and has now netted 15 goals in his past 20 caps. He has come big on several occasions including against Germany and he’s a top name to do so once again. Bet9ja and Bet365 have 2.75 odds for him to score.
Football Lover. All-round junkie of the beautiful game. Could be found watching football most of the time. If not he’s writing about them or making some punditry you don’t agree with. A certain bias for Arsenal and Santos FC.
