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England's final game before the World Cup is a friendly against Costa Rica at the Inter&Co Stadium on Wednesday night.
The Three Lions kick off their World Cup campaign with a match against Croatia, before facing Ghana and Panama in Group L for a place in the round of 32.
Costa Rica failed to qualify for the World Cup, so focus will be on how they perform against one of the more favoured nations for the tournament.
Read our prediction, preview and betting tips for the game below, and make sure to check out our today's betting tips page for more of our expert predictions.
England vs. Costa Rica key stats
- England have won seven of their last nine games in all competitions (D1, L1).
- Costa Rica are winless in five matches across all competitions (D2, L3).
- England are unbeaten in the previous two H2Hs (W1, D1).
England vs. Costa Rica preview: Three Lions to roar to victory?
| England | vs | Costa Rica |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | FIFA Ranking | 51 |
| Harry Kane (113) | Most Caps | Orlando Galo (32) |
| Harry Kane (79) | Most Goals | Manfred Ugalde (11) |
| 821 | Total Caps | 230 |
| 146 | Total Goals | 30 |
| 4 | Uncapped Players | 6 |
England continued their World Cup preparations with an unconvincing 1-0 friendly win against the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, New Zealand (85th).
It was no surprise to see Harry Kane score the winner with a record-extending 79th goal for the Three Lions, and his form will be crucial if they are to have any chance of ending 60 years of hurt.
Due to the strength of their squad, England will be one of the favourites to win just their second-ever World Cup and first since 1966, and will be relying on Thomas Tuchel's winning record in terms of silverware at club level to get them there.
The Three Lions heavily rotated against New Zealand, playing two separate XIs, but with this being their final outing before the World Cup, we are expecting them to go strong against Costa Rica.
As for their opponents, they failed to qualify for the World Cup, meaning Fernando Batista only has friendlies to look at his squad.
It is a fairly fresh one with as many as six uncapped players in it, but there has been trouble with Kenneth Vargas, Warren Madrigal and Alejandro Bran all axed for disciplinary reasons.
Incidentally, Costa Rica's first meeting with England was at a World Cup, as they held them to a 0-0 draw in 2014 to shockingly top a group also containing Italy and Uruguay.
The Three Lions also beat them 2-0 in a friendly in 2018, and given they are ranked 47 places below them in the world rankings, Costa Rica are underdogs again here.
England vs. Costa Rica form guide & betting tips
| England | vs | Costa Rica |
|---|---|---|
WWDLW |
Form | LDDLL |
| 6 | Goals For | 3 |
| 2 | Goals Against | 11 |
DLW |
Friendlies | DLL |
Whispers predicts: England 2-0 Costa Rica
England are 2/11 (1.18) favourites to win, but while we agree with the bookies, these odds are too short for us to back.
Instead, our first pick is BTTS – No at 8/15 (1.53), as BTTS has only come through in one of England's last nine games.
Under 2.5 goals at 29/20 (2.45) is our next bet, which has come through in all of the Three Lions' previous five matches.
Overall, we are predicting a repeat of the scoreline in the last H2H in 2018, and so Correct score – 2-0 at 5/1 (6.00) is our final punt.
> BTTS – No at 8/15 (1.53) | Likelihood: Probable
> Under 2.5 goals at 29/20 (2.45) | Likelihood: Possible
> Correct score – 2-0 at 5/1 (6.00) | Likelihood: Outsider