ENGLAND BONANZA!
Three Lions to play EIGHT matches this autumn
Gareth Southgate is set to receive a major boost today with UeFa expected to give england the opportunity to play eight matches this autumn.
the european governing body are preparing to announce the return of international football in September, when two fixtures will take place as normal, followed by new-look triple headers in October and November.
the reformed calendar will give england the chance to play two extra matches this year, with the Fa likely to take advantage by staging two friendly matches in addition to the home-and-away UeFa Nations League matches against Iceland, Denmark and Belgium which are already on the fixture list.
Sportsmail revealed in april that UeFa were considering international triple headers as a means of rescheduling games lost during the sporting shutdown and that plan is due to be confirmed following a meeting of UeFa’s executive committee this morning.
Southgate’s desire for his players to have two friendlies this autumn in addition to england’s Nations League matches will meet opposition from clubs concerned about player burnout, but the Fa will point out they are not extra games and will merely replace matches against Italy and Denmark cancelled after the lockdown in March.
the triple header windows planned for October and November will only be one day longer than usual international breaks, so england’s players will be expected to play three games in 10 days, and Southgate (right) may pick a bigger squad.
england have not played since their european Championship qualifiers against Kosovo and Montenegro last November.
Southgate had feared going almost a year without seeing his players, so eight matches this autumn would be a major bonus as the manager plans for the rescheduled tournament next summer.
Southgate has held online meetings with a number of his players in recent weeks, but is not planning to see them until September, when the first international break is expected to take place before the start of the 2020-21 Premier League season. On a significant day for the resumption of international competition, UeFa are also expected to confirm a last-eight Champions League tournament will take place in Lisbon, with the europa League equivalent being held in Frankfurt. the format and venues for the european Championship will also be confirmed with UeFa expected to stick with the multi-national model, while the Under 21 euros are also expected to be held next year as originally scheduled and as previously reported by