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England face Wales at Wembley in a match that is only friendly by name, not by nature. Club loyalties are put to one side, and now it is all about continental pride. The two teams are neighbours and eternal rivals, set to do battle once again under that famous arch.
England head into this international break with a confidence that has not been felt before under manager Thomas Tuchel. After dismantling Serbia 5-0 in Belgrade, the England faithful are seeing what they believe this team is always capable of. Tuchel has not made any massive changes to the squad that were available last time out and hopes that the continuity can keep those results coming.
Craig Bellamy and his Welsh charges are looking to bounce back after a loss to Canada 1-0 in their last international game. Being a friendly, Bellamy took the chance to play a young and experimental side that was outclassed in Swansea, probably because of all the changes he made. That was only his second defeat in 12 matches as head coach of the national side, and he can only hope that his team has gained experience from the loss.
England v Wales key information
• Date: Thursday, October 9
• Kick-off time: 7.45pm BST
• Venue: Wembley Stadium, London
• Referee: Urs Schnyder
• VAR: Lukas Fähndrich
• TV channels: ITV (UK)
• Streaming: ITVX (UK) | BBC iPlayer (UK)
• Odds: ENG (27/100) - DRAW (19/4) - WAL (9/1)
England team news
There was considerable interest in Thomas Tuchel’s selection for this international break, where England will face Wales and Latvia in a friendly and a World Cup qualifier, respectively. The only changes to the squad from the previous selection were enforced due to injury. Bukayo Saka for Noni Madueke, Jarell Quansah for Tino Livramento, and Ruben Loftus-Cheek for Adam Wharton. Both Quansah and Loftus-Cheek were replacements in the last squad and retain thus retain there places despite being changes from the initial call-ups.
Since the squad announcement, Manchester City defender Nico O'Reilly has replaced Chelsea’s Reece James in the squad after James was injured in his team’s win over Liverpool on the weekend. This is O’Reilly’s first call-up to the England squad, stepping up from the Under-21s team.
There was no place in the squad for Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden or Jack Grealish despite all three’s return to fitness or form. Tuchel outright said that he has "no problem" with Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden or Jack Grealish despite not selecting them; instead, he "decided to keep with the straightforward decision of inviting the same group."
What message that sends to the players is yet to be seen, but the bold call from Tuchel will be scrutinised even more with his selection in the international break that will follow.
England predicted lineup v Wales, (4-2-3-1)
Coach: Thomas Tuchel
Pickford; Spence, Konsa, Guehi, Lewis-Skelly; Anderson, Rice; Rashford, Rogers, Saka; Kane.
Wales team news
A recall for Aaron Ramsey was the notable standout from Bellamy’s squad selection for this international break. Having recovered from injury and playing regularly for his club side, Pumas UNAM in Mexico, Ramsey was looking to get back playing for his national side too. However, he was left out of the Pumas squad for Sunday's 2-1 Liga MX defeat against Guadalajara, with it being reported he felt discomfort during training and has since withdrawn from the Wales squad entirely.
Leeds United winger Dan James is another big name who has had to withdraw from the squad after rolling his ankle in training. Leeds United manager Daniel Farke said the 27-year-old is expected to be out for four to six weeks. Cardiff City's Isaak Davies and Rubin Colwill have replaced Ramsay and James in the squad.
Bellamy’s selection also welcomed back Ethan Ampadu, Joe Rodon, Jay Dasilva and Nathan Broadhead, all into the fold after they all missed selection last time out because of injury.
Wales predicted lineup v England, (3-5-1-1)
Coach: Craig Bellamy
Darlow; Rodon, Mepham, Davies; Williams, Wilson, Ampadu, Cullen, Dasilva; Johnson; Moore.
Where to watch on TV or live stream?
In the UK, the match will be shown live on TV on ITV1. You can also stream the match on ITVX or on the BBC iPlayer.
Head-to-head record
England came through their last round of fixtures unscathed, winning the World Cup qualifiers against Serbia and Andorra. In their last five games, they have only lost once, and that was a friendly against Senegal at the end of last season.
Wales had that loss against Canada, but did beat Kazakhstan before that in the last international break. In their last five, they have two losses, two wins and a draw, but under Bellamy have only lost two in 12.
It’s no surprise that these two countries have played against each other a lot over the years, with the first fixture dating all the way back to January 1879. Out of the 104 fixtures since then, England are dominant, winning 69 and only losing 14. The last time England did not win was a draw in 1973. In their most recent game, England won 3-0 in the 2022 World Cup with goals from Rashford, Foden and Trippier. At Wembley, England have won their last three games by a 10-0 aggregate score.
Odds for England v Wales
England are heavy favourites to win at bet365. The bookmaker has them at 27/100 to win, with a Wales win at 9/1. A draw is at 19/4.
Odds correct at time of writing, subject to change.