ENGLAND made the perfect start to their Euro 2024 campaign with an historic win in Italy and will be confident of following it up with another victory when Ukraine come to Wembley.
England hadn't won on Italian soil since the 1960s so I thought we might see a draw but Gareth Southgate's men deserved their 2-1 win on a night when Harry Kane became his country's record scorer.
A second-half fightback from the Azzurri made England sweat but they managed to hold on, even after Luke Shaw was sent packing by an erratic referee who ruined my cards bet. I tipped Italy for most cards and they committed 13 fouls to just six for the English in Naples – but the Three Lions had five players carded as the whistler flashed yellows for the tiniest bit of time-wasting.
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Southgate's side are now in pole position to top the group and it's hard to see Ukraine springing a shock at Wembley after they lost 4-0 to England in Rome at the last Euro finals.
The ongoing conflict back home seemed to have an effect on Ukraine in the Nations League as they finished behind Scotland after losing 3-0 at Hampden and drawing a blank when they faced the Scots in neutral Poland.
Star man Mykhailo Mudryk hasn't impressed since his big-money move from Shakhtar to Chelsea so you suspect England will need to have an off night for the Ukrainians to stand a chance.
How the bookies view it
England are heavy favourites after that impressive win in Naples and their best price is just 2/7 at QuinnBet. Ukraine are as big as 12/1 with Coral and even the draw pays a chunky 5/1 at LiveScoreBet.
Head to head
England have only lost once in eight meetings with Ukraine and even that 1-0 Kiev loss back in 2009 came after an early red card for keeper Rob Green. The Three Lions romped it in that Euro 2020 quarter-final but it ended in a 1-1 draw when the Ukrainians last came to Wembley in 2012.
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Players to watch
A weight will have lifted from Kane after his historic goal in midweek and the Spurs star is just 17/20 at QuinnBet for another strike here. The odds increase to 13/5 at Ladbrokes if you back him to open the scoring and he's 4/1 at Betfred for two or more goals.
Being around his countrymen might spark Mudryk back into life and he will be desperate to show English fans what he's capable of. The winger is 13/2 at Paddy Power for anytime scorer.
Anything else catch the eye?
Ukraine couldn't manage a goal against Scotland so I'm expecting England to shut them out at Wembley, with a win to nil for the Three Lions paying 37/40 with BetVictor. I also fancy the English to be winning at half-time and full-time, with that bet paying 20/23 at Ladbrokes.
A corners bet salvaged something for me in Naples and that market could be worth a look again. I like over 6.5 England corners at 10/11 with Unibet while the Three Lions are evens at -4 in the handicap.
Artem Dovbyk should get the nod up front for Ukraine with Roman Yaremchuk struggling for form at Brugge. The Dynamo Kiev target man is 13/8 with Unibet just to have an effort on target and that looks worth a punt.
This Euro 2024 match between England and Ukraine will be played on Mar 26, 2023 and kick off at 17:00. Check below for our tipsters best England vs Ukraine prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
