The big one is almost upon us as England and Germany fight for the right to reach the quarter-finals of Euro 2020.
The Wembley clash is arguably the pick of the last-16 matches with some classic matches against each other over the years.
Germany tend to come out on top when they face the Three Lions at a major tournament but you can’t call it this time around.
England have hardly caught the eye with their playing style but they’ve looked a solid outfit so far, and are yet to concede a goal at this tournament.
In contrast, the Germans have been in mixed form. They lost a tight match to France 1-0, turned on the style to beat Portugal 4-2 but were all over the place in their 2-2 draw to Hungary.
The only injury concern Germany boss Joachim Low has is Lukas Klostermann – the right-back is sidelined with a thigh issue.
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Gareth Southgate has more on his plate, however. Tuesday will mark the first day where Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell come out of their isolation. Will they be risked?
talkSPORT.com has predicted how England will line up for their Euro 2020 last-16 clash.
Goalkeeper: Jordan Pickford
The obvious pick as he has been Southgate’s no.1 keeper for some time now and has had a decent tournament thus far.
He was arguably England’s best player during their dour draw against Scotland at Wembley, making good saves to deny the Three Lions’ rivals a shock win.
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Defenders: Kyle Walker, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw
Southgate has set England up relatively conservatively this summer and don’t expect him to change that any time soon.
This should be a very tactical contest and with Germany playing three defenders with wing-backs all tournament, it would be no surprise to see England play the same system.
However, we reckon England will stick to the 4-2-3-1 which has served them well so far.
Walker can continue at right-back, recovering from an iffy performance against Croatia to look solid against Czech Republic.
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He will be vital as the Three Lions look to deal with Germany’s left wing-back Robin Gosens, who gave Portugal so many issues.
Shaw has started the last two matches at left-back and with Chilwell only just coming back from isolation he should play from the first whistle again.
Meanwhile, just like against Czech Republic, we’re set to see Stones and Maguire partner each again after a solid first outing together at the tournament.
Midfielders: Declan Rice, Kalvin Phillips, Mason Mount
Both Rice and Kalvin Phillips have done well at Euro 2020 so why rock the boat?
Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson came on in the second half against the Czech Republic but looked off the pace and would be a risk in a knockout fixture.
This will be Phillips and Rice’s toughest game yet as they will need to watch out for the German wing-backs while also dealing with the likes of Toni Kroos and Ilkay Gundogan.
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Mount, though, could be the man to come into the midfield in place of Jack Grealish. If Southgate goes conservative, this is where we will see it.
Mount isn’t a defensive midfielder but he’s more reliable when it comes to pressing and marking and could be vital if England are going to stop Germany controlling the match.
Grealish is, though, likely to be called upon should the Three Lions get into trouble.
Some might feel Mount is a risk given his recent isolation due to close contact with Billy Gilmour, but ex-England forward Gabriel Agbonlahor doesn’t believe so.
He told talkSPORT: “They have said he’s on the Zoom meetings for set-pieces. He’s a fit lad anyway.
“If there is one player in that squad that could probably get away with playing without training with the team, it’s Mason Mount. I’ve got a funny feeling he could start.”
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Forwards: Phil Foden, Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling
This will be controversial whoever gets picked but only three can get play across the front line.
Grealish and Bukayo Saka were excellent against the Czechs but as mentioned, this should be a very tactical match.
Foden hasn’t been as good as England fans will have hoped but certainly has the ability to produce multiple world-class moments.
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Sterling has been England’s only goalscorer at England at Euro 2020, plus his pace could cause Mats Hummels serious problems, as Jason Cundy eluded to last week.
And of course you can’t leave captain Kane out of the starting XI.
Germany team news
England’s rivals are set have their XI boosted by the return of Thomas Muller.
He was only fit enough for a role off the bench in their 2-2 draw with Hungary, but he should start against the Three Lions.
Leon Goretzka’s cameo performance in the same game could see him come into contention too, with Ilkay Gundogan a possible drop out after he missed training at the weekend.
Chelsea ace Antonio Rudiger also missed out on training but is expected to be fit.
Germany remain without Lukas Klostermann who has a long-term thigh issue.
How Germany could line up…
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