England take on the USA in Group C of the 2010 FIFA World Cup this evening in Rustenburg, south Africa.
The match kicks off at 20:30 local time (20:30 CET, or 19:30pm BST), the starting line-ups are as follows.
Table of Contents
England Starting XI v USA
Green, Johnson, King, Terry, A Cole, Lennon, Lampard, Gerrard, Milner, Heskey, Rooney
England Substitutes
James, Hart, Dawson, Warnock, Upson, Carragher, J Cole, Barry, Wright-Phillips, Carrick, Crouch, Defoe
USA Starting XI v England
Howard, Cherundolo, DeMerit, Onyewu, Bocanegra, Donovan, Bradley, Clark, Dempsey, Altidore, Findley
USA Substitutes
Guzan, Hahnemann, Spector, Bornstein, Goodson, Beasley, Holden, Torres, Edu, Feilhaber, Herculez Gomez, Buddle
The match will be referee’d by Carlos Eugenio Simon of Brazil.
England v USA World Cup 2010 Preview
England will hope to win this, their opening match of World Cup 2010, but can count on a more difficult match against the USA than in previous World Cups.
That said, the USA have conceded many goals in their recent games, enough to suggest that they will be unable to hold out for 90 minutes against England’s classy attack, which includes the World Class centre forward Wayne Rooney of Manchester United, who has just enjoyed his best ever season as loan striker for the English club.
Fabio Capello, manager of England, has indicated that he expects the main USA threat to come from set pieces, where the side are strongest. He is right to be cautious of this, particularly as his goalkeeper has not established himself in position and he has a new international centre back pairing since the recent departure of then captain Rio Ferdinand.
Expect England to create a number of chances, however, as their experienced and attack minded midfield is well figure-headed by the explosive talent of Rooney.
England should win this match by two or more clear goals, based on form, but will hope for a clean sheet to boost confidence too. Whether or not they can keep the USA attack out for 90 minutes may make the difference between winning and drawing tonight, however, as the nerves will be jangling in this World Cup opener.
An early goal from England might see them settle and score a few. An early USA goal could see a very interesting match on our hands. Either way, this Atlantic clash will be watched by many millions all around the globe.
Expect a 3-1 victory to England: Wayne Rooney should prove the difference, while England’s new look back five may demonstrate an error or two as they have been apt in recent friendlies – the USA are good enough to capitalise upon such an event at least once.
