An old friend is back in the Croatian dugout. Kloppesque salt-and-pepper beard x (Bielsistian glasses-on-string + Simeone-style all-black wardrobe) = all-new distinguished Slaven Bilic. Aleksandar Holiga, editor-in-chief of Croatian website Telesport, reports.
Pre-match stories from Camp England. Jordan Pickford and Sheikh Mansour Thomas Tuchel set the scene.
Trent Alexander-Arnold may have impressed against the Czechs, but he loses his place to former Liverpool team-mate Jarell Quansah. Alex Scott is handed his first international start, while Jordan Pickford reclaims his spot in goal.
Croatia meanwhile are captained by the evergreen Luka Modrić. Not all 41-year-olds are washed up.
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The teams
Croatia: Livaković, Stanišić, Vušković, Gvardiol, Perišić, Modrić, Kovačić, Ivanović, Petar Sučić, Baturina, Musa.
Subs: Pandur, Kotarski, Smolčić, Šutalo, Kramarić, Vlašić, Pašalić, Jakić, Pašalić, Matanović, Luka Sučić, Mišić.
England: Pickford, Quansah, Konsa, Guehi, Hall, Anderson, Bellingham, Scott, Saka, Kane, Gordon.
Subs: Trafford, Steele, Alexander-Arnold, Chalobah, Ngumoha, Branthwaite, Lewis-Skelly, Rogers, Garner, Calvert-Lewin, Gibbs-White, Eze.
Referee: Sven Jablonski (Germany)
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England are coming off the back of an ultimately comfortable 2-0 win in Czechia. Relive that here and now, one, two, three.
Today’s match is officially being played behind closed doors. Croatia are being punished for crowd trouble during a Nations League quarter-final against France. However, football fans can’t take anything at face value these days, and this is no exception. Uefa rules allow an exception for kids up to the age of 14 from the local Rijeka area, and up to 6,000 plus guardians are expected to attend. Throw in the 100 England fans allowed in and the 8,200-seat stadium should be around two-thirds full.
Preamble
Welcome to the rematch of the 2018 World Cup semi-final. Yes, England have won their last three games against Croatia, the latest in some style in Arlington this summer, but memories of the 2018 World Cup semi-final loom largest whenever these two countries meet, that’s just how it is and we don’t write the rules. Steve McClaren’s not complaining, to be fair. Kick-off is at 5pm BST. It’s on!
