Gareth Southgate's side travel to Budapest this evening for a crucial World Cup qualifier
(Image credit: PA Images)
Memories of the Euros are still fresh in the minds of England fans, but attention now immediately turns to the 2022 Qatar World Cup as another tournament cycle begins.
The Three Lions have three wins from three and are sitting comfortably at the top of Group I ahead of this month’s games against Hungary, Andorra and Poland.
England’s often lifeless mid-season internationals might attract more interest than ever before, with a quarter of supporters in a recent YouGov survey for Betfair claiming they are more likely to watch the upcoming qualifiers than they had previously been as a result of England’s impressive Euros campaign.
Gareth Southgate’s side are also expected to cruise past minnows Andorra without trouble, and given their odds of 1/50 to win at Wembley anything less than a convincing victory will be a shock for the ages.
In the final and possibly most difficult game of the international break, England are 3/4 to beat Poland in their own backyard, a result that would likely see Southgate’s team pull clear at the top of the standings.
Qualification looks to be a given for England barring a catastrophic collapse. Odds of 1/18 to finish top of Group I give an indication of their superiority, and although Southgate will have warned his players against complacency, it’s probably safe to start checking the date on your passport if you fancy a trip to Qatar for some winter sun and football next year.
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Southgate and his players are in with a chance, then, and as many of one in five supporters polled in Betfair’s survey think football will come home, with a further 64% believing that this is the nation’s best team since 1966, while 87% have backed Southgate as the right man for the job.
Hungary narrowly missed out on qualifying from their group in the Euros despite shock draws against France and Germany, but a 3-0 defeat in the first game to Portugal gave them too much to do. With that in mind, England will be aware of the stumbling block Marco Rossi’s side present. The odds suggest Adam Szalai is the danger man and he’s Hungary’s leading chance of scoring anytime at 7/2.
Betfair spokesman Sam Rosbottom said: "With international football back on our radar so soon after the end of the Euros, our survey aimed to get to the bottom of how confident England fans are in winning their first World Cup since 1966 after such a promising run to the final earlier this summer.
"More than a year out we are also bringing back our ‘Football’s Coming Home-o-Meter’ based off the Betfair Exchange World Cup winners market, which currently gives England an 12% chance of lifting the trophy in Qatar.”
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