Winning Odds: Slovenia - England

World Cup 2010 Preview: Slovenia - England

* Kick-off: Wednesday 23 June, 15:00 BST
* Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth, South Africa

By Alex Young

23 Jun 2010 09:47:00

England skipper Steven Gerrard consults Fabio Capello during Algeria match (Getty Images)

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Teams

• England
• Slovenia

Recovering some English pride

After a disastrous goalless draw against Algeria last time out, England are in desperate need of a win against Slovenia to keep their World Cup campaign alive.

Three points against Slovenia is the only result that would guarantee England's progression to the knockout stages, with a 0-0 or 1-1 draw opening the door for the USA to finish in the second place on goals scored if they draw with Algeria, with any other result meaning lots will be drawn between the Americans and the English to see who will face the Group D winners.

Rumours of a camp divided are circling around the English players' heads, with ex-captain John Terry coming out on Sunday and telling the press that the players intended to having clear-the-air talks with manager Fabio Capello, a claim that was quickly quashed by the head coach.

Entering new territory

Slovenia's camp, on the other hand, is nothing but smiles. Appearing in only their second-ever World Cup, they are on the brink of going further in the competition than ever before after a group-stage elimination in 2002.

Slovenia were not very impressive against Algeria in their first match, with only a goalkeeping error gifting them a 1-0 win, but they turned on the style against the USA in their second match, cruising to a 2-0 half-time lead.

But the Americans hit-back in equal panache in the second half and ended up drawing the game 2-2 — and even had a late winner ruled out in confusing circumstances. The referee seemed to penalised a USA player in the build-up to Maurice Edu's tap-in, but then refused to single-out which particular player it was post-match, causing much consternation back home.

FORM GUIDE

England	Slovenia
England 0-0 Algeria	Slovenia 2-2 USA
USA 1-1 England	Algeria 0-1 Slovenia
Platinum Stars 0-3 England	Slovenia 3-1 New Zealand
Japan 1-2 England	Slovenia 3-1 Qatar
England 3-1 Mexico	Slovenia 1-0 Russia

TEAM NEWS

Slovenia

With a successful first 45 minutes against the USA, head coach Matjaz Kek is likely to stick with the working formula, especially considering they will be expecting a tough test against the English.

An enforced change of Matej Mavric in for the injured Marko Suler is expected, along with the loss Nejc Pecnik, who appeared as a substitute in the previous two games but broke his ankle in training — meaning he will miss the rest of the tournament.

Probable Line-up (4-4-2): Handanovic; Brecko, Cesar, Mavric, Jokic; Kirm, Radosavljevic, Koren, Birsa; Dedic, Novakovic.

England

Fabio Capello has admitted that he may be forced to make tactical and personnel changes ahead of the crunch game, with a rumoured 4-5-1 formation set to be employed with Joe Cole in line to make his first appearance of the tournament, and Heskey being dropped to allow Rooney to lead a sole front line with Gerrard in the hole just behind.

After Carragher’s booking against Algeria, he will miss the game through suspension with Matthew Upson confirmed as the man coming in.

Probable Line-up (4-4-1-1): James; Johnson, Upson, Terry, A Cole; Lennon, Lampard, Barry, J Cole; Gerrard; Rooney.



PLAYERS TO WATCH

Slovenia

Valter Birsa impressed in a drab opening game against Algeria and the playmaker caused mayhem in the USA penalty area in their previous game with his deliveries, so he is definitely a player to keep your eye on — word of advice to Upson and Terry, there — on Wednesday.


England

After the Algeria game, there really isn’t a particular player to watch as none have shined so far, and with an injection of quality and urgency needed Joe Cole might well prove to be the man to provide it. The Chelsea man (if not for much longer) is desperate for a starting berth, with consistent calls from fans and the press for him to start against Slovenia, and Capello may grant him his wish.



PREDICTION

England were poor against the USA, and were even worse against Algeria in arguably their worst performance in years, so it could go one of two ways; Either they’ve reached rock bottom and the only way is up, or they will keep digging. It's tempting to suggest they will keep digging, especially against the best team in Group C so far, but with the memory of similar situations in Mexico '86 and Italia '90 the hope must be that England, one way or another, will find a way through.

Slovenia 1-2 England