England vs Bosnia and Herzegovina: Preview and Prediction

England will host Bosnia and Herzegovina on Monday in St. James’ Park, looking to boost his confidence level ahead of UEFA Euro 2024.

With the UEFA European Championships looming in 2024, England will be one of the teams expected to do well and will be looking to lift their spirits with a strong performance when they host St. James’ Park Bosnia and Herzegovina.

On paper, England are the better team here and will be expected to produce a strong performance in front of the fans. Meanwhile, Bosnia will be looking to bounce back from their defeat against Ukraine. It will be interesting to see if they can upset the odds here. Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the meeting ahead of Monday’s clash between the two sides.

Team news and tactics

England

The Three Lions will be without Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw and Anthony Gordon due to injuries. Meanwhile, Gareth Southgate has made some notable omissions from his squad, including Marcus Rashford and Jordan Henderson.

England are likely to line up in a 4-3-3 formation against Bosnia and Herzegovina, with Jordan Pickford in goal. Ezri Konsa and Kieran Trippier should start at full-back and will look to help at both ends of the pitch. John Stones is likely to start alongside Marc Guehi in the center of defence.

As for the midfield unit, Trent Alexander-Arnold will start alongside Declan Rice and Conor Gallagher. While Rice will anchor the midfield and be expected to break up opposition attacks, Alexander-Arnold and Gallagher will add drive and creativity to the team.

Ollie Watkins is likely to lead the line for England against Bosnia, with Harry Kane getting some rest. Finally, Bukayo Saka and Eberechi Eze should be on either side of Watkins in Monday’s games.

Likely formation (4-3-3): Pickford; Konsa, Stones, Guehi, Trippier; Alexander-Arnold, Rice, Gallagher; Saka, Watkins, Eze

Bosnia and Herzegovina

The visitors will be without Sead Kolasinac and Ermin Bicakcic due to fitness issues. Bosnia and Herzegovina will line up in a 3-4-1-2 formation against England on Monday night.

Nikola Vasilj will start in goal for the visitors behind a back three of Anel Ahmedhodzic, Dennis Hadzikadunic and Nihad Mujakic. Jusuf Gazibegovic and Nail Omerovic will start as full-backs. They will look to protect the back three and help in counter-attacking situations.

Benjamin Tahirovic will debut alongside Rade Krunic in central midfield. Haris Hajradinovic will start as a central attacking midfielder and will look to add creativity in the final third. He will also look to link the midfield to the attack. Finally, Ermedin Demirovic will lead the line for Bosnia alongside Edin Dzeko.

Likely formation (3-4-1-2): Vasilj; Ahmedhodzic, Hadzikadunic, Mujakic; Gazibegovic Tahirovic, Krunic, Omerovic; Hajradinovic; Dzeko, Demirovic

Key statistics

• England are unbeaten in 24 of their last 26 home international friendlies.
• England have won 12 of their last 14 friendlies.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina have lost their last 3 away friendlies in a row without scoring a goal.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina have failed to win 15 of their last 17 away matches.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina has one win in its last six internationals.

Player to watch

Ollie Watkins

Embed from Getty Images

The 28-year-old was in phenomenal form last season, scoring 19 goals and collecting 13 assists in the Championship. He will be looking to continue his impressive run of form and cement his place as Harry Kane’s chosen deputy for UEFA Euro 2024. Watkins is our key player to watch out for and could punish a vulnerable defense of Bosnia here.

foresight

England 3-0 Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Three Lions will be favorites in this contest and should be able to pull off a comfortable win at home. England are the better team on paper and have done quite well in their last outings as well.

On the other hand, Bosnia and Herzegovina come into this game on the back of a defeat against Ukraine in March. They are likely to struggle against England and the Three Lions should be able to heap more misery on themselves. Hard Tackle predict a 3-0 win for Gareth Southgate and his crew.