Germany and England renew rivalries

Standout of the midweek goes in Dortmund

It’ll be friendly in name only when Germany and England lock-horns at Signal Iduna Park on Wednesday evening, live on ITV. Click here to place your bets on a number of markets, including match winner, first goal scorer and handicap.

This is, on paper, a chance for both nations to put the finishing touches to their preparation for the weekend’s World Cup qualifiers. Don’t believe a word of it! These old rivals will be desperate to take the bragging rights, and the fact the locals are out for revenge, following a 3-2 loss to England 12-months ago, adds needle.

Germany’s squad a signal of intent

If punters were in any doubt of the importance of this match to both managers, they need only look at the squad Germany announced to the media recently. Premier League big-guns, including Mesut Ozil and Shkodran Mustafi of Arsenal, Man City’s Leroy Sane and Emre Can from Liverpool all get the nod. Head coach Joachim Low must make do without goalkeeper Manuel Neuer however, with the shot-stopper pulling out due to a calf injury. That paves the way for PSG’s Kevin Trapp to answer his nation’s SOS.

Germany and England were involved in that five-goal thriller last March in Berlin, with Kroos and Gomez on point for the locals, while England claimed the win thanks to Kane, Vardy and a late clincher from Dier. Goals have been a feature of past meetings between these sides too, with both teams scoring in five of the last six games. The aggregate score in that time reads Germany 11-12 England. That makes Coral’s 3/4 on both to find the net again look massive.