England vs Montenegro Predictions

England welcome Montenegro to Wembley on Thursday evening, as they look to pick up where they left off in Bulgaria last month. By contrast, the visitors go in search of what would be their first win in the group.

Having made light work of beating a sorry-looking Bulgarian side last month, recording their fifth win of the campaign in the process, Gareth Southgate’s England are now on the verge of winning Group A.

Without disrespecting the other sides in the group, it’s been far too easy for England. Barring their defeat in Prague, the Three Lions have been immaculate, racking up five wins, scoring an impressive 24 goals in the process. Playing at Wembley has brought Southgate’s side plenty of joy. First time out at this venue, they battered Czech Republic by five goals to nil, following that up with an easy 4-0 victory over Bulgaria.

The reverse of this fixture saw England emerge victorious by five goals to one. On that occasion, it was abundantly clear there’s a considerable gap in quality between the pair. Even without Raheem Sterling, then, who was removed from the squad due to friction with team-mate Joe Gomez, the Three Lions should find things comfortable on Thursday.

While England have performed well in qualifying, things haven’t gone to plan for Montenegro, who’re still looking for their first win of the campaign. Thursday’s visitors come into this match having drawn three and lost four. Scoring goals has been a real problem for Faruk Hadžibegić’s men, who’ve notched just three goals in Group A, only one of which has come away from the comforts of home. However, a lack of goals is not their only issue, as they’ve also failed to keep teams at bay, shipping a worrying total of 15 goals. After conceding five against England on home soil, Montenegro won’t exactly be brimming with confidence ahead of Thursday’s clash.

In the betting, ‘England to Score Over 3.5 Goals’ looks like the best option at the prices given. As we saw in the reverse fixture, the Three Lions have the quality to really hurt a side of Montenegro’s calibre. Moreover, the visitors come into this fixture off the back of conceding an abundance of chances against Kosovo in their last away match, which bodes well for the hosts, who made light work of scoring goals against the Kosovans. Add in that England have scored four or more in each of their previous Group A home games and backing the English to flourish offensively makes sense.

‘Correct Score’ players are pointed towards a 5-0 win for the hosts, who’re backed to repeat the attacking antics shown in the reverse fixture, while improving at the other end. Montenegro scored at home, but their shocking away efforts in qualifying suggest they’ll struggle to create against an England side that has been very dominant against weak opposition; and one that is yet to concede in the group at this venue.