England get their World Cup campaign underway with what many predict will be a walk in the park, but just how easy will the clash against Iran be for Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions stars?
Much of the World Cup betting action in the UK will, obviously, be based on home supporters backing England to do well in Qatar. Fortunately, this is more than just mindless optimism, as, under Southgate, England are now a genuine force when it comes to major tournaments.
They made it to the semi-finals in the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the final of the delayed Euro 2020, and many predict that England can continue that run of form at the 2022 World Cup, that’s despite a rather alarming drop in form in recent UEFA Nations League matches.
So how good or bad are Iran? Well, it’s worth remembering that they are led by experienced national team coach Carlos Queiroz, who, of course, made a name for himself as assistant to Sir Alex Ferguson at Man United, a position he held for five years.
He only took over as Iran coach in September but will be looking to get his team well-drilled for the group stage, where their match with England may be deemed as a damage limitation exercise.
Southgate will be happy that this is his first match of the tournament, as it means he can undertake some level of experimentation if he sees fit.
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Prediction
We can’t see anything other than a massive win for England, especially if they strike early, and we don’t expect Jordan Pickford to be picking the ball out of his net at any point, so we’d punt for a 5-0 win.
Grosvenor Sport
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