Wednesday, June 11

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Sports Mole previews Tuesday's International Friendlies clash between England and Senegal, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

After producing an underwhelming display against Andorra, England will be looking for an improved performance when they face Senegal in Tuesday's friendly at the City Ground.

The Three Lions are also aiming to maintain their 100% record under Thomas Tuchel, while the visitors are looking to extend their 23-game unbeaten streak.

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Match preview

England are still in the early stages of their new era under Tuchel, who officially started work as Gareth Southgate's replacement at the beginning of the year.

Tuchel began his tenure with back-to-back home victories in the March international window, following a 2-0 win over Albania with a 3-0 victory against Latvia to take maximum points from their first two World Cup qualifiers.

The Three Lions added three more points to their tally in Saturday's away clash with Andorra, although the narrow 1-0 scoreline and poor performance drew significant scrutiny.

Harry Kane's 50th-minute effort proved to be the best England could muster against a team ranked 173rd in the world, with Tuchel admitting after the match that his team "lacked urgency and seriousness" in the final half hour at the RCDE Stadium.

While Tuchel may have been left frustrated, he can be pleased with the fact that he has become the first England manager to start with three consecutive victories without conceding, ensuring the Three Lions will be in top spot in Group K when they resume their qualifying bid with a home game against Andorra in September.

England are now preparing for their first outing at the City Ground since facing Wales in a wartime friendly in 1941, with the hosts hoping to record a seventh consecutive victory since suffering a surprise home defeat to Greece in October's UEFA Nations League clash. 

Senegal are currently enjoying a long 23-game unbeaten run in all internationals (W16, D6), although one of those matches resulted in a penalty shootout defeat to Ivory Coast in the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations final.

Their unbeaten run includes six games from last year's Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign, as they dropped just two points on their way to securing their place at the tournament that starts in December. 

Pape Thiaw's side began 2025 with a goalless draw against Sudan in World Cup qualifying, before they recorded a 2-0 home win over Togo to leave them in second place and one point adrift of group leaders DR Congo with four matches left to play. 

Senegal will resume their quest to reach a third consecutive World Cup in September, but they are currently preparing for a friendly with England after playing out a 1-1 draw with the Republic of Ireland on Friday.

The Lions of Ternaga appeared to be heading towards defeat in Dublin until Crystal Palace's Ismaila Sarr netted a late equaliser to cancel out Kasey McAteer's opener, with the 1-1 scoreline ensuring Senegal have gone 25 matches without conceding more than one goal in a single game.

Tuesday's visitors will hope their strong backline can inspire them to their first-ever win over England after losing 2-0 in their only previous meeting in the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup. 

England form (all competitions):

Senegal International Friendlies form:

Senegal form (all competitions):

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Team News

England are unable to call upon Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins, who pulled out of the squad before the win over Andorra due to a minor injury.

There are likely to be several changes to the side that started against Andorra, which could result in starting opportunities for Dean Henderson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Levi Colwill, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Declan Rice, Eberechi Eze and Anthony Gordon. 

Tuchel has confirmed that Bukayo Saka will start on Tuesday after recovering from an injury issue that kept him out of Saturday's matchday squad. 

The England boss could also present Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah with the chance to make his first international appearance. 

As for the visitors, they are without the services of Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Pape Matar Sarr due to a muscle problem. 

Former Liverpool forward Sadio Mane is unavailable for selection after he asked to be left out of the squad because of personal reasons.

Edouard Mendy should come into the side to feature in goal, while Kalidou Koulibaly and Moussa Niakhate are in contention to start in central defence. 

Idrissa Gueye, Lamine Camara, Ismaila Sarr and Nicolas Jackson are also in line to feature in Tuesday's starting lineup. 

England possible starting lineup:

Henderson; Alexander-Arnold, Chalobah, Colwill, Lewis-Skelly; Bellingham, Rice; Saka, Eze, Gordon; Kane

Senegal possible starting lineup:

Mendy; Mendy, Koulibaly, Niakhate, Jakobs; Sarr, Gueye, Camara; Diatta, Ndiaye, Jackson

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We say: England 1-1 Senegal

 

England will be looking to produce an improved performance following their disappointing display in Saturday's narrow win over Andorra, but we think the Three Lions could experience more frustration when they face a Senegal side that are tough to break down and have proven to be a difficult team to beat in recent times. 

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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