Gareth Southgate has asked his England players to deliver a complete performance as they look to progress to the World Cup knockout phase as group winners and, in turn, end Wales’s stay in Qatar.
England are assured of progress to the last 16 should they avoid a four-goal defeat to Wales, whose hopes of making the knockout stages hang by a thread after drawing 1-1 with the United States and losing 2-0 to Iran.
Southgate wants to see England’s defence and attack combine for an overall positive display at Ahmed Bin Ali Stadium. The England manager saw his team score six in their opener with Iran but conceded two late goals after allowing the game to drift. Then on Friday England were involved in a goalless draw with the US in which their defence showed resolve but the attack failed to fire.
Asked what the priority is ahead of meeting Wales for the first time since a 2-1 group-stage win at Euro 2016, Southgate said: “We want to win football matches. We have got to balance freshness with stability, so that’s always a decision you’re making when you’re picking a team.
“We’ve got a chance to win the group with a positive result, so there’s a lot for both teams resting on the game.
“There’s no game where there isn’t pressure on either team and really our performance is the key. We played well with the ball in our first game, scored a lot of goals. The second game was tougher for us, we defended really well. Now we want to put both elements of the game together.”
When asked to explain the rivalry between England and Wales, Southgate replied with a smile: “Well, basically they’re here and we’re right there! There’s not a lot more I can say than that, really.
“It’s like any two countries whose borders are next to each other. There’s a competitive rivalry. For me, it’s a great sporting rivalry. It’s no more than that.”
Southgate will not make wholesale changes for the game and confirmed that all of the squad, including Harry Kane, trained well on Monday. However, Jordan Henderson will come into midfield as a replacement for Jude Bellingham, who has started England's two previous games.
Speaking alongside Southgate, Henderson wasn’t interested in talking up the rivalry beforehand and instead wants England to show their superiority over Wales on the pitch. “For me, we don’t need extra motivation,” he said.
“The motivation is to win games, and we’ll do our stuff on the pitch really, we will do our talking on the pitch, perform well and focus on what we’ve got to do, so that’s what we will do.”
'There's no reason we can't also cause upset'
Even though their chances of progression are very slim, Wales will hope to provide another surprise in this World Cup of shock results. Wales, who have won only once in 10 games, last defeated England in 1984 but Gareth Bale insists that Wales can draw on the underdog spirit that is sweeping Qatar.
“There’s been a few shocks in the tournament already and there’s no reason why we can’t do the same,” said Bale, Wales’s record goalscorer. “Everyone has weaknesses. We’ve done our homework and had meetings, and I’m sure they’ve done the same with us.
“We know how difficult it will be. England are a very good team, they’re one of the favourites to win the tournament. We are under no illusions it will be hard, we’re going to give everything like we always do.”
Wales manager, Rob Page, said that defeat to Iran last Friday, a result that all but ended their hopes of a last-16 berth, took it out of his players. “It’s a big ask for anybody in this environment to go four days later,” he said.
On whether Aaron Ramsey and Bale will start, Page added: “I’m going to pick a team that I think can go out and compete against England, whether that’s with or without them [Bale and Ramsey]. If they don’t start, can they can make an impact? That’s always been my dilemma playing games in quick succession.
“Whether they come on and have an impact or start and last an hour or 90 minutes, they are talented footballers. We’re all getting criticism now and rightly so because results aren’t going our way. We’re big enough to take it — it’s not a problem. We put our big boy pants on and get on with it.”