England Takes on Slovakia in WC 2018 Preliminaries

England has won all the games during the Euro 2016 qualifiers, the only team to achieve such a performance. They are surely hoping for something similar and they begin the qualification round for World Cup 2018. The road starts with a match away from home against Slovakia, a team that is yet to defeat them.

No Injury Concerns for England

English footballers spend a lot of time on the pitch, as the Premier League teams have an incredibly busy schedule every year. Injuries and fatigue are a major concern, but luckily for Allardyce, he doesn’t have to worry about either of them. The new manager will have his best players fit to play and will use an offensive minded starting formation.

Under normal circumstances, England could play it safe and wait for opportunity to present itself. However, every new manager wants to win his first official match and this one against Slovakia is particularly important. Allardyce’s performance will be compared to the one of his predecessor and when it comes to qualifiers, he had big shoes to fill.

Slovakia Aims for Another Draw

Losing three matches in a row has thought Slovakian players and managers a valuable lesson. Playing offensive football against England is a losing strategy and they’ve made amends. That’s how it was possible for them to avoid defeat in the last and most important official match. At the European championship, they scrapped one point after surviving a 90 minutes siege.

They have the advantage of playing in front of their fans this time and pressure is less intense. The starting formation will feature five defenders, four midfielders and a single striker. Their definition of success would be a draw, but punters should trust England to win. As long as bet365 Sports is offering odds of 1/1 on this outcome, this is an irresistible proposition.