Bulgaria vs England prediction: How will Euro 2020 qualifier play out tonight?

England take on Bulgaria on Monday looking to bounce back from their disappointing defeat to Czech Republic on Friday.

Gareth Southgate’s side still sit top of group A, but now only on goal difference after Jakub Brabec and Zdenek Ondrasek’s goals helped inflict a 2-1 defeat on England following Harry Kane‘s opener from the penalty spot.

England’s loss in Prague not only saw them throw away their first chance to seal qualification for the Euro 2020 finals, but also ended a 43-match unbeaten run in World Cup and European Championship qualifiers dating back to October 2009

Southgate’s side still hold another opportunity of clinching qualification for next year’s tournament before domestic action resumes next weekend, but for that to happen they must emerge victorious in Sofia and Montenegro must avoid defeat against third-place Kosovo.

England will however take encouragement from their 4-0 victory against Krasimir Balakov’s side at Wembley last month, a game in which Kane recorded his second hat-trick for his nation.

Prediction

Wholesale changes are something that Southgate has rarely advocated, but they appear necessary given England’s defensive frailties which were once again exposed against Czech Republic. And it is likely that those changes will determine the extent to which England are successful in Sofia.

A 4-0 thrashing of the same opposition at Wembley last month should serve as good omens for Southgate’s side, but destroying a team at home holds little importance as England discovered in their 2-1 defeat on Friday, a side that they had thrashed 5-0 on home soil.

However, Bulgaria sit bottom of group A and this is close to the perfect fixture that Southgate would have chosen to get a low-confidence England back on their feet.

Whichever front three Southgate chooses will cause problems for the Bulgaria defence, and should England show improvement defensively they will leave Sofia three points clear at the top of the group once again.

When is it?

Kick-off is at 7:45 PM BST on Monday 14th October

How can I watch it?

The match will be broadcast on ITV1 from 7pm.

You can also live stream the match via ITV HUB Live on a range of devices, including laptops, smartphones and tablets.

Team news

Southgate is expected to make several changes to the line-up that lost in Prague, including handing an international debut to Tyrone Mings.

The Aston Villa defender is set to come in ahead of Joe Gomez to replace Michael Keane, whose latest struggle in England colours came against Czech Republic on Friday.

Leicester’s Ben Chilwell is also poised to replace the suspended Danny Rose, while Trent Alexander-Arnold could also come in for Kieran Trippier in the other full-back position.

Midfielder Harry Winks is also in line for a starting berth after Declan Rice missed training through illness, while Ross Barkley may also replace Chelsea teammate Mason Mount.

Predicted line-up

Pickford, Chilwell, Maguire, Mings, Alexander-Arnold, Henderson, Winks, Barkley, Sterling, Sancho, Kane

Odds

England are the favourites for this game despite Friday’s defeat, with Paddy Power backing them at 1/5, while Bulgaria can be backed for inflicting a second successive defeat on Southgate’s men for odds of 11/1.

For a draw you can get odds of 9/2.