Two sides with very different ambitions meet at Wembley in the UEFA Nations League (UNL) as an England side chasing top spot host Croatia, who are peering anxiously over their shoulders.
Match News and Current Form
A home defeat to Spain is all that separates England and Spain at the top of Group A3, but as the Three Lions get their shot at retribution in the final round, only a win here will realistically be enough to take it that far. Either way, a spot in the quarter-finals is all but assured in England’s first UNL cycle under Thomas Tuchel, which will be the first time since the inaugural 2019 edition that England have progressed past the group stage. They’ve been making light work of the UNL of late, as after their defeat on matchday one, they’ve responded with three successive wins to nil, including a 7-0 thrashing of Croatia in the reverse fixture, but they’d be wise to remain cautious having won just one of their four internationals at Wembley in 2026 (D1, L2).
A tricky-looking Group A3 has proven to be exactly that for Croatia, who have only beaten bottom-of-the-table Czech Republic in this cycle. A trio of defeats against Spain and England were disappointing, if not unsurprising, given their last eight losses in all competitions came against sides ranked inside FIFA’s top ten. They can never be overlooked in this competition though, having qualified for the knockouts in each of the last two cycles, and three wins from their last five competitive away games (D1, L1) will leave them clinging onto hope that they can at least finish this campaign strongly, even if they realistically have no chance of leapfrogging England into second.
Head-to-Head History
Since Croatia beat England in the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, the Three Lions are unbeaten in five H2Hs (W4, D1), winning both H2Hs in 2026 by an 11-2 aggregate score.
Hot Stats and Streaks
Seven of England’s last eight UNL games featured over 2.5 goals.
England’s last five matches produced an average of 5.4 goals per game.
Thirteen of Croatia’s last 15 internationals produced over 2.5 goals.
Croatia’s last six games produced at least two second-half goals.
Key Players to Watch and Missing Players
Ballon d’Or winner Harry Kane is about to break new ground for England here, as he is set to make a record 126th appearance for the Three Lions, surpassing Peter Shilton’s previous record of 125 - Kane has scored in all four of England’s UNL games this cycle. Croatia’s Nikola Vlašić could look to make a late impact having closed the scoring with four of his last five national team goals.
Bukayo Saka remains out for England, who will also be missing Myles Lewis-Skelly due to suspension and Marc Guéhi after he picked up an injury at the weekend. Croatian forwards Andrej Kramarić and Franjo Ivanović are both missing due to injury, while Joško Gvardiol also picked up a knock at the weekend for Manchester City.
For all the latest team news, please check the Flashscore match centre.
Betting Analysis
Current form hints at only one winner here, and the manner in which England won the reverse fixture hints that England to win by a -2 handicap could offer solid value.
Author: Chris Wilson