Andorra vs England

England head to the Estadi Nacional to entertain Iberian outsiders Andorra in a seemingly routine World Cup qualification task.

Except for a 2-0 home win over FIFA’s worst-ranked nation San Marino in September, Andorra have so far fulfiled their status of Group I whipping boys. The ‘Tricolours’ have lost each of their other four World Cup qualifiers by an aggregate scoreline of 14-2, succumbing to at least a three-goal margin three times in the process. Moreover, the abovementioned win over San Marino remains one of Andorra’s mere three wins in the World Cup qualifiers, where their overall record shows nothing but disaster (GP58 – W3, D3, L52). Taking the Euro qualifying series into account, the Iberian minnows have lost seven of their last nine major tournament qualifiers on home soil (W2), drawing a blank in six of those defeats. Having kept a clean sheet in their last two competitive home fixtures, the hosts will hope to avoid a blowout here.

Meanwhile, England conceded a late equalizer against Poland last time out (1-1), bringing their 100% four-match Group I start to an end (W4). Regardless of that disappointment, the ‘Three Lions’ are on the verge of reaching their seventh consecutive World Cup finals, as they harbor a commanding four-point lead over second-placed Albania. Unless some unexpected developments here, the visitors should extend their hopes of completing their second straight World Cup qualifying campaign without a single loss. Gareth Southgate’s men have fallen behind in just two of their last 24 World Cup qualifying fixtures, most recently during a 2-1 victory over Slovakia in September 2017. Considering just 90 minutes of play, England have lost just two of their 17 away internationals since exiting the 2018 World Cup in Russia (W9, D6, L2).