Opta Facts | International Friendlies: Home is where the heart is

FOUR years ago, Southgate’s England took on two tough opponents as their final two warm-up games before getting down to business-proper and reaching the final.

Fast forward and not much has changed. The Three Lions have returned to the north-east and, having seen off Bosnia in a professional, if not spectacular fashion, all eyes turn towards Iceland.

As reports of the Aurelias Borealis invading England reach fever pitch, the chance to shine for some of the fringe players is running out. Given this, expect more poise and predatory play for the cubs determined to make the final Three Lions pack!

This is where the guys at Opta come in. By scouring their records and using their incredible database of match facts and stats their AI-driven predictive analysis can often determine what could happen on the pitch.

Of course, it’s not an exact science, it’s a funny old game…

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ENGLAND vs ICELAND

• England have won their last two matches against Iceland, both in the UEFA Nations League in September and November 2020. They won both games without conceding. The Three Lions have also kept nine clean sheets in their last 12 matches against teams outside the Fifa world ranking top-10 – BTTS – NO | 11/10

• Harry Kane has scored 12 goals in his last 12 international matches – against Bosnia and Herzegovina, he netted his fifth goal in 13 appearances as a substitute for the national side, with only Jermain Defoe scoring more as a sub (seven in 35 apps). – KANE TO SCORE | 12/25

• England have scored in both halves in seven of their last 11 matches – ENGLAND SCORE IN BOTH HALVES | 13/25

• This is England’s final game before they start their European Championship campaign. The Three Lions haven’t lost their final match before any of their last 20 major tournaments (W15 D5) – ENGLAND TO WIN | 1/9

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Three Lions Treble

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SCOTLAND’s inclusion in Germany was the result of a fantastic qualifying campaign, Steve Clarke’s men guaranteeing progress with two games to spare from a group that held both Spain and Norway.

That said, things haven’t been plain sailing since, embarking on a run of seven games without a win, before a laboured victory over minnows Gibraltar last time out.

The Tartan Army find themselves in a Group of Death, with Germany, Hungry and Switzerland, but Clarke’s men remain confident they can create history and the class of ’24 will graduate from the groups stage at a major final for the first time.

SCOTLAND vs FINLAND

• Finland have lost their last two away games, conceding four goals both times, against Wales (1-4) and Portugal (2-4). – SCOTLAND TO SCORE +2.5 GOALS | 29/10

• Finland’s Teemu Pukki has been involved in five goals in his last five international appearances (4 goals, 1 assist), including a brace last time out against Portugal. – PUKKI TO SCORE | 27/10

• Scotland have never lost a match against Finland in eight previous meetings (W6 D2). They’ve only faced the Faroe Islands (11 games) and Cyprus (9 games) more often without losing in their international history. – SCOTLAND TO WIN – 4/6

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In Clarke we trust!

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Home Comforts!

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