Greece's "battle" with England begins at Wembley for first place in the group

The 3rd matchday in the Nations League includes a major challenge for the Men's National Team, as it brings them face to face with England at a packed Wembley on Thursday night (10/10, 21:45), in the derby of the undefeated and absolute leaders of Group 2 in League B.

Banners in support of Serbia's position on Kosovo in the stands of Lille – Red Star

Beyond the prestige, since the "Three Lions" are among the top teams on Earth, there is also the substance, which is first place and promotion to League A. The two representative teams have two wins each (against Finland and Ireland) without conceding a goal and according to current data, they will fight until the end for the top spot.

Tickets for the match have been sold out to one and the players are expected to enjoy a unique atmosphere in one of the top and most historic facilities in the world.

Just three months ago, England played in the final of EURO 2024, while they reached the quarter-finals of the last World Cup. On the other hand, the Greek team has an excellent defensive figure for days in Ivan Jovanovic on its bench, as evidenced by its unbreakable home record in its last four official games.

It is noteworthy that the two teams will meet after 18 years, as they last faced each other in a friendly match at old trafford On August 16, 2006, Which Ended with a wide victory for the "Three lions" (4-0).

As for what happens in the games between the two teams, tradition is clearly favorable to the English who remain undefeated in 9 matches over the Last 50 Years. the greek team won a friendly in Finland in 1952 and a meeting for the 1964 olympic qualifying Tournament, as Great Britain.

Since then, the Greek national team has suffered seven defeats and two draws, while the 2-2 draw at Old Trafford in 2001 is the only game in which Greece scored on English soil. UEFA has appointed inexperienced Italian Andrea Colombo as referee.

In terms of play, Jovanovic focused on developing his game in training this week, and it would be surprising if he didn't choose a 4-2-3-1 formation. Pavlidis will replace the injured Ioannidis at the top of the attack, while Masouras will play on the right wing and Tzolis on the left.

From then on, the Serbian coach's concerns lie with two positions in the center, which are being contested by Kourbelis, Siopis, Mantalos and Zafeiris.

As for England, the wins in September came without Cole Palmer, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden. Palmer's impressive start to the season with Chelsea could see him move ahead of the other two in the No.10 slot, which Jack Grealish has served so well in the past month.

Kyle Walker is back but Trent Alexander-Arnold should retain his place at right-back after impressing against Ireland and Finland. Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke has returned to the England squad after an absence of almost seven years.

With Harry Kane carrying a knock from the games against Bayern Munich, the door to the starting line-up could open for either Solanke or Ollie Watkins.

Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa has withdrawn from the squad through injury, along with midfield duo Morgan Gibbs-White and Kobe Maino. Chelsea winger Noni Mandweke suffered a foot injury in last weekend's 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest but has managed to be fit.

The possible lineups:

ENGLAND (Lee Carsley, 4-2-3-1): Pickford, Alexander-Arnold, Stones, Gueye, Colwill, Bellingham, Rice, Saka, Palmer, Gordon, Kane

GREECE (Ivan Jovanovic, 4-2-3-1): Vlachodimos, Rota, Tsimikas, Mavropanos, Koulierakis, Kourbelis (Siopis), Mandalos (Zafiris), Bakasetas, Masouras, Pavlidis, Tzolis

The prehistory of Greece with England:

25.07.1952 – Friendly, Hameenlinna Stadium (Finland) Referee: Irio Kaivola (Finland), Spectators: 2,500 Greece – England 4-2 (21′, 79′, 85′ Papageorgiou, 30′ Emmanouilidis – 45′ Grayson, 58′ Slater)

21.04.1971 – EURO 1972 Qualifiers, Wembley Referee: Marti Hirviniemi (Finland), Attendance: 55,123 England – Greece 3-0 (23′ Chivers, 68′ Hurst, 87′ Fr. Lee)

01.12.1971 – EURO 1972 Qualifiers, “Georgios Karaiskakis” Referee: José María Ortiz De Mendible (Spain), Spectators: 34,014 Greece – England 0-2 (57′ Hurst, 90′ Chivers)

17.11.1982 – EURO 1984 Qualifiers, Kaftanzoglio Referee: Adolf Prokop (East Germany), Spectators: 41,534 Greece – England 0-3 (2′, 63′ Woodcock, 68′ S. Lee)

30.03.1983 – EURO 1984 Qualifiers, Wembley Referee: Dusan Krsnak (Slovakia), Attendance: 48,500 England – Greece 0-0

08.02.1989- Friendly, OAKA Referee: Heinz Holtzmann (Austria), Spectators: 6,000 Greece – England 1-2 (2′ Saravakos – 8′ Barnes, 79′ Robson)

17.05.1994 – Friendly, Wembley Referee: James McCloskey (Scotland), Attendance: 23,659 England – Greece 5-0 (23′ Anderton, 37′ Beardsley, 44′, 55′ Platt, 65′ Shearer)

06.06.2001 – 2002 World Cup Qualifiers, OAKA Referee: Rune Pedersen (Norway), Spectators: 22,338 Greece – England 0-2 (63′ Scholes, 87′ Beckham)

06.10.2001 – 2002 World Cup Qualifiers, Old Trafford Referee: Dick Jol (Netherlands), Attendance: 66,090 England – Greece 2-2 (68′ Sheringham, 90′ Beckham – 36′ Charisteas, 69′ Nikolaidis)

16.08.2006 – Friendly, Old Trafford Referee: Wolfgang Stark (Germany), Attendance: 45,864 England – Greece 4-0 (15′ Terry, 30′ Lampard, 35′, 42′ Crouch)

PANAGIOTIS KOUMANTAROS