England boss Roy Hodgson has warned that tonight’s game against San Marino may not be a goal feast
England boss Roy Hodgson has warned Three Lions fans that tonight’s Euro 2016 qualifier against San Marino may not be a ‘goal feast’, despite the fact that San Marino are the rated as the joint-worst team in the world rankings alongside Bhutan.
Cautious
The England boss was cautious in his latest press conference.
He told Sky Sports: “We’re not trying to play anything down, but I must also say we’re not trying to suggest this is going to be a goal feast. It might, but it might well not be.
“As I’ve said in my programme notes, it’s one of these games where you do rely on a lot of people’s understanding of the situation and understanding of the game.
“If the expectation is that we’re going to go out and score loads of goals and find it very, very easy, I think we all know that’s not true”
Worst
If England does not notch up a lot of goals against San Marino then they never will. The minnows have never won a competitive game and every time England has played them the Three Lions have scored five or more goals.
Most of the San Marino players are part-timers and as such any team that England puts out against them should win handsomely. That is not being typically arrogant or over-confident it is based on history and San Marino’s limited choice of players and quality.
England played the minnows in qualifying for the World Cup. The results displayed the difference in the two teams. England won the home game 5-0, while the away game resulted in an 8-0 hammering of the home side.
Other so called big European football nations would have no problems scoring a hatful of goals against minnows. The Three Lions seem to be in a period of transition and are not as strong as the other big European football nations.
However, I would be very surprised if England did not keep up with that record of scoring five or more against the visitors. The home side are odds of 1/200 to win claim victory, which just about sums up the difference in quality between the teams.
Even San Marino boss Pierangelo Manzaroli has admitted the game is a damage limitation exercise telling Sky Sports: “It will have to be a big effort,”
“Playing England is different for us because more often than not it is a matter of damage limitation.
“But we don’t rule anything out – you never know when the chance will arrive to get a result. It’s going to be a difficult match and the main objective will be to come away without a heavy defeat.
“We also want to try to show what we can do and try to keep the match even for as long as possible.”
Chance
The San Marino game is an opportunity for Roy Hodgson to experiment and give players the chance to stake a claim for a first team place. Southampton full-back Nathaniel Clyne could be in line for his debut at right back, with Everton youngster John Stones out of action through injury.
Arsenal youngster Calum Chambers has been called-up as a replacement for Stones. The former-Southampton star could also start at right-back. Neither Clyne nor Chambers are likely to let the team down, especially against such modest opposition.
Other inexperienced players such as Chambers’ Arsenal teammate Kieran Gibbs and Aston Villa midfielder Fabien Delph are likely to start the game at Wembley. Swansea midfielder Jonjo Shelvey could also make his second international appearance, with his last one also coming against San Marino in 2012.
Inevitable
An England win in this clash is inevitable, no matter how anybody tries to dress this game up it is likely to be nothing more than a training exercise of attack versus defence, with San Marino likely to have ten men behind the ball for most of the match.
Roy Hodgson is unlikely to learn much from the encounter, but he will expect his team to go out and do a professional job and pick-up the three points. However, he may be being slightly cautious ahead of the clash and being respectful to the opposition, because it would be a major shock if the Three Lions did not notch-up a big victory over their visitors.
How many goals will England score against San Marino?
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