Sterling to score first in Kosovo power play
England ready to rotate squad but City forward will be eager to atone for his clash with Gomez
England secured their place at Euro 2020 with a 7-0 demolition of Montenegro at Wembley on Thursday and will surely take the chance to experiment with their line-up when they take on Kosovo tomorrow.
The only player certain to start is Raheem Sterling, who was left out of the squad earlier in the week as a result of an altercation with Joe Gomez, and the Manchester City player will be keen to atone for that aggression with a power-packed performance on the pitch.
With that in mind, Sterling should be backed to score the first goal at 4/1, with a saver on him at 13/8 to score at any time in Pristina.
However, while Sterling may be finding the net at one end, England’s defence may be struggling to keep a clean sheet at the other, given Kosovo’s attacking ability. The Kosovans have scored at least one goal in all seven of their group matches and you have to go back 15 games to find the last time they failed to get on the scoresheet.
Gareth Southgate could take the opportunity to rest much of his first-choice defence and goalkeeper and it would not be the biggest surprise to see Nick Pope, Tyrone Mings, Kieran Trippier, Gomez and Danny Rose make up England’s back five.
A lack of familiarity could lead to
Raheem Sterling to score against Kosovo
Over 3.5 goals in Kosovo v England
Australia to win the Davis Cup chances for this Kosovan side and a goal-fest should be expected, with more than 3.5 goals at 7/4 and more than 4.5 goals at 4/1 coming under serious consideration.
Incidentally, England are 9/2 joint favourites alongside France with Ladbrokes to win Euro 2020. That price is one for discussion much closer to the tournament next year, but I am firmly of the view that this England side and their manager are vastly overrated and there is far better value to be had further down the market.
Tennis is the latest sport to tinker with the format of one of its iconic competitions but seems to have hit on a winning formula.
The decision to condense the Davis Cup Finals into an 18-team tournament held over seven days seems an inspired one and most of the world’s best players have committed to playing in the event in Madrid next week.
Those 18 teams will compete in six groups of three, with the group winners and the two best secondplaced teams qualifying for the quarter-finals.
Andy Murray, who led the British team to Davis Cup glory in 2015, will be competing in the event for the first time in three years as he continues his attempt to rejoin the world’s elite after hip surgery.
Britain have been drawn in a group with Kazakhstan and Holland and are 2/7 to top the section and 16/1 to become champions. Despite Murray’s presence, that price does not appeal and it could be worth chancing Australia at 15/2 to win their first Davis Cup since 2003.
They have been granted a relatively easy draw against Belgium and Colombia in the group stages and in Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios they have two players capable of upsetting the world’s best on any given day.
With the likelihood of a couple of big guns falling by the wayside in the group stages, the Australians could sneak under the radar and take advantage of an easy passage to the knockout stages.