Wales vs England: Win or nothing for both sides in tricky group stage match

Topics: TV Schedules, TV Listings, England, Wales, 2022 FIFA World Cup

Wales and England will face off on matchday three of the 2022 FIFA World Cup group stages, with a round of 16 spot on the line.

It's win or nothing for Wales as they prepare to take on England in their final group stage match. The Dragons began their World Cup journey - their first in 64 years - by fighting from a goal down to secure a 1-1 draw against the USA, and hopes were high that Gareth Bale and his colleagues would continue to improve as they took on Iran.

However, an insipid showing cost them dearly, and coupled with Wayne Hennessey's sending off, Wales found themselves in a deep hole as Iran were able to take advantage of their numerical advantage to grab two quick goals late on in the match. As such, Rob Page's men come into this showdown against England needing nothing short of a win - and, ironically, for Iran to also do them a favor - if they want to qualify for the knockout rounds for the first time.

Meanwhile, England thought they were firmly in control of Group B after a resounding 6-2 win over Iran on matchday one. Yet, Gareth Southgate's side were well off the mark as they stumbled to a scoreless draw against the USA, making it the third time England have failed to beat the Americans in World Cup meetings. With four points, they are still on top of the table, but are actually in danger of crashing out early should they lose to Wales and either the USA crush Iran by a large margin or Iran defeat the Stars and Stripes.

Permutations aside, the pressure will be on both sides to get a positive result in this must-win tie. It's often said that cometh the hour, cometh the man. Will fans see someone step up and deliver for either Wales or England with a round of 16 spot on the line?

Team news: Wales vs England

Wales: With Wayne Hennessey ruled out following his unfortunate red card against Iran, Page will have to call on Leicester City's Danny Ward to feature in between the posts for this must-win tie.

England: Ben White could miss this tie due to illness, while James Maddison has made big strides in his recovery from injury but is not expected to be involved here.

Match facts: Wales vs England

England have won their last six meetings with Wales across all comps...and have conceded just once
That was at EURO 2016, when Gareth Bale scored a free kick
Wales haven't beaten England since May 1984
The Three Lions have won seven of their last 14 final group stage matches at World Cups (D5 L2)...
...however, one of those losses was to Belgium at the 2018 edition
Wales have failed to win their last seven games across all comps (D2 L5) for the first time since May 2003
The Dragons are hoping to pick up a win in order to avoid featuring at a major competition sans winning a single game
England have won just one of their last eight matches across all competitions (D4 L3)