After a thrilling win in their respective Round of 16 fixtures, Ukraine (UKR) and England (ENG) will play each other for a spot in the last four of Euro 2020. Ukraine struck the winning goal in the added time of the extra time, while two goals in the second half helped the Three Lions knock Germany out of the tournament. Both sides played out a 0-0 draw in their last meeting in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers.
Ukraine will be pinning their hopes on Oleksandr Zinchenko and Andriy Yarmolenko after outstanding performances from the duo against Sweden. The Manchester City full-back scored the opening goal and delivered a sumptuous cross for Artem Dovbyk’s winner. Meanwhile, Yarmolenko found his rhythm after a disappointing outing against Austria. The Ukraine captain gave a clever pass for Zinchenko’s goal and was unlucky not to pick up another assist. A vulnerable backline, which conceded six goals so far, could be a concern for Andriy Shevchenko. However, goalkeeper Georgiy Bushchan put in an impressive shift in the last game.
Bukayo Saka could miss the quarter-final clash after suffering a knock during training. Phil Foden is likely to replace the Arsenal winger, while Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho are other options. Mason Mount has returned to training after being forced into precautionary isolation and is likely to make it to the playing eleven. The back three will be keen to ensure a fifth straight clean sheet in the tournament. Kyle Walker, Harry Maguire, and John Stones didn’t put a foot wrong against Germany. The England attacking unit, led by Harry Kane, will be aiming to exploit weaknesses in the Ukraine backline. They will be relying on left-back Luke Shaw, who was heavily involved in setting up both the goals against Germany.
Head-to-Head
Played: 7
UKR won: 1
ENG won: 4
Drawn: 2
Top Five Fantasy Points scorers (Round of 16)
UKR: O Zinchenko (20.5 points), A Dovbyk (8 pts), A Yarmolenko (7 pts), M Matviyenko (7 pts), I Zabarnyi (6.5 pts)
ENG: L Shaw (13 pts), R Sterling (11.5 pts), J Stones (10.5 pts), H Kane (10.5 pts), J Pickford (9.5 pts)
Euro 2020 Stats
Top Goalscorer: UKR – A Yarmolenko, R Yaremchuk (2 goals); ENG – R Sterling (3 goals)
Most Assists: UKR – A Yarmolenko (2 assists); ENG – J Grealish (2 assists)
Most Passes Completed: UKR – M Matviyenko (255 passes); ENG – J Stones (236 passes)
Most Successful Tackles: UKR – M Shaparenko (6 tackles); ENG – K Phillips (6 tackles)
Shots Saved: UKR – G Bushchan (13 saves); ENG – J Pickford (7 saves)
Injuries/Suspensions
UKR: A Besedin (injured), O Zubkov (doubtful)
ENG: B Saka (doubtful)
Playing 11
UKR (possible): G Bushchan; O Karavayev, I Zabarnyi, S Kryvtsov, M Matviyenko, O Zinchenko; S Sydorchuk, T Stepanenko, M Shaparenko; A Yarmolenko, R Yaremchuk
ENG (possible): J Pickford; K Walker, J Stones, H Maguire, L Shaw; D Rice, K Phillips, M Mount; P Foden, R Sterling, H Kane
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Parameswaran Sankaranarayanan
Parameswaran Sankaranarayan is a sports enthusiast who has worked in print, website, and other digital platforms. He was part of the editorial team of first-ever Indian football-based website - IndianFootball.com (now defunct) - and passionately follows the latest happenings in world football. During his time as a journalist, he had the opportunity to interact with some of the iconic personalities in Indian sports and witness some memorable moments in Indian football.
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