England vs Austria prediction, preview, team news and more | International friendlies 2021

England will take on Austria on Wednesday in the first of their two warm-up matches ahead of Euro 2021.

Gareth Southgate has two matches to zero in on his strongest starting XI from a talent pool that is big enough to invoke envy among his peers. The Three Lions' warm-up game against Austria will be followed by a friendly against Romania on the 6th of June.

It has been a hectic season for players across Europe and fatigue could be a decisive factor in team selection. Southgate's men will be desperate to build on their semi-final run at the 2018 World Cup as they go into the Euros as one among the favourites to win the cup.

Ahead of naming his final #EURO2020 squad next week, Gareth Southgate has selected 33 players to join up with the #ThreeLions from this weekend as our preparations for this summer's tournament get under way.

— England (@England) May 25, 2021

Austria have a few fitness concerns of their own. Their coach Franco Foda has already made the brave decision to drop Heinz Lindner, their most experienced goalkeeper, from the squad. Lorient forward Adrian Grbic is another big name that's missing from their 26-man squad.

The Austrian side that's led by David Alaba will play Slovakia on the 6th of June. Their Euro campaign will start against North Macedonia exactly a week later on the 13th.

England vs Austria Head-to-Head

England and Austria have clashed 18 times till date. England have won 10 games while Austria have won four. Four matches have ended as draws. The last time the two sides locked horns was in a friendly in 2007 when England won the game 1-0.

England form guide: L-W-W-W-W

Austria form guide: W-D-D-W-L

England vs Austria Team News

England

Harry Maguire has been named in the squad but is unlikely to feature as he recovers from an ankle ligament injury. The same goes for Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips.

Players from Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea who played European finals this past week, namely Dean Henderson, Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kyle Walker, Mason Mount, Phil Foden, Mason Greenwood, Marcus Rashford and Raheem Sterling will be rested here.

Ben White, Ben Godrey and Aaron Ramsdale have earned their first call-ups to the national side and could be given a chance against Austria.

Injuries: None

Doubtful: Harry Maguire, Jordan Henderson, Kalvin Phillips

Suspensions: None

Austria

Foda has confirmed that Marko Arnautovic will be unavailable as he recovers from a thigh muscle injury. Striker Karim Onisiwo limped off the training ground on Sunday due to knee pain and is a doubt for Wednesday. Stefan Ilsinker did not train with the squad because of illness. Austria captain Julian Baumgartlinger has returned to training.

Injuries: Marko Arnautovic

Doubtful: Karim Onisiwo, Stefan Ilsinker

Suspensions: None

England vs Austria Predicted Lineups

England predicted XI (3-5-2): Jordan Pickford, Ben Godfrey, Conor Coady, Tyrone Mings; Kieran Trippier, Jude Bellingham, Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Jadon Sancho

https://t.co/wM54M3kcgb pic.twitter.com/OW7JYQItUA

— ÖFB - oefb.at (@oefb1904) May 31, 2021

Austria Predicted XI (4-4-2): Alexander Schlager, Stefan Lainer, Martin Hinteregger, Aleksandar Dragovic, Andreas Ulmer, Xaver Schlager, Florian Grillitsch, David Alaba, Christoph Baumgartner, Marcel Sabitzer, Michael Gregoritsch

England vs Austria Prediction

England are much stronger on paper. Gareth Southgate will experiment and make plenty of changes but they should be able to get a win here.

Prediction: England 2-0 Austria