In the opening match of their World Cup campaign, England face Carlos Queiroz's Iran side, who will look to provide an early shock in the competition.
In what seems to most fans as Gareth Southgate’s ‘last tournament’, he will certainly want to leave a mark on his England stint, full of both Optimism and heartbreak.
He is not every fan's cup of tea, but it is hard to deny the job he has done in his time as the England boss. An inspired run in Russia saw them bow out to Croatia in the semi-finals, whilst narrowing missing out on winning the Euros against Italy, in a heart-breaking defeat on penalties.
However, his side faces a different challenge in Qatar, with the competition in mid-season and the hot temperatures which both will take a huge toll on the players.
They face an Iran side led by Ex-Manchester United coach Carlos Queiroz, a team that will certainly be well adapted to the heat, at least more so than the English players.
They are seen as the underdogs in the group but have impressed in the run-up to the competition, something both England and Wales have failed to do.
Their recent results include a big win 1-0 against Uruguay, and a 1-1 draw against the AFCON champions Senegal, showing the pedigree they bring to the group.
In what looks to be a potential banana skin in the group for England, both sides will be well up for it to make a good start to their campaigns.
Team News
A major doubt for England is James Maddison, who looks to be out of the opener at the very least. The midfielder sustained an injury in his final Premier League game for Leicester, which has led to him missing the final training session before the Iran game.
Whilst Manchester City right-back Kyle Walker will also miss out, as he continues to recover from groin surgery. Kieron Trippier’s great form for Newcastle should see him take up the spot as the right-sided full-back.
Omid Ebrahimi will miss the game with a groin injury. Whilst Bayern Leverkusen's striker Sadar Azmoun is suffering from a torn calf muscle, with doubts about whether he will be part of the team or not.
However, there are no other fresh injuries concerns, and most will be expected to play a part.
Likely Line-ups
England: Pickford, Trippier, Stones, Maguire, Shaw, Rice, Bellingham, Rice, Mount, Foden, Sterling, Kane.
Iran: Beriranvand, Moharrami, Kanaani, Hosseini, Hajsafi, Ezatolahi, Gholizadeh, Nourollahi, Jahanbakhsh, Amiri, Taremi
Key Players
England’s Starman and captain, a player who will surely be the key to any success England have at this year’s World Cup. He won the golden boot at the last major tournament, Euro 2020, and will certainly look to score goals this time around.
Extra motivation will be to beat Wayne Rooney’s tally of 53 goals as England’s all-time record goal scorer, with Kane being just two shy with 51 goals to his name. Most fans will expect the Spurs’ striker to break this, with the form he has shown for his club side this season.
Kane has scored 12 in just 15 games in the league this season, even scoring through the poor form of Antonio Conte’s side of late. This would have certainly given Southgate hope he can replicate this form in Qatar, with him being the only real goal-scorer in the squad.
The 30-year-old is Porto’s number nine and boasts some impressive stats in the Primeira Liga, six goals and 5 assists are a great return in 13 matches.
It shows his ability to link up with his teammates whilst putting the ball in the back of the net himself, with players such as Alireza Jahanbakhsh and experienced Vahid Amiri, this could play well in favour of Iran.
His stats for his country are also fairly impressive, playing 61 games since his debut, the striker has scored 27 goals, which is almost a goal in every other game. Much like Kane, he looks to be the key if Iran have any chance of qualifying from a tough group from their perspective.
Match Details
Where is the match being played?
The match will be played at the Khalifa International Stadium.
What time is the match kicking off?
The match will kick off at 1 pm in the UK.
How can I watch the match?
The match will be able to watch on BBC One and BBC Iplayer in the UK.