England v Slovakia: 60-second cheat sheet for Sunday’s Euro 2024 last-16 tie
England meet Slovakia in the last 16 of Euro 2024 on Sunday in Gelsenkirchen as they continue their bid for a first major tournament since 1966.
Gareth Southgate’s team are widely considered to be in the easier half of the draw, meaning they avoid hosts Germany, France, Spain and Portugal unless they reach the final.
But first they have to overcome Slovakia, a team with an unbeaten record against England in major tournament international football.
Head to head record
The good news is that England have an excellent record against Slovakia. They have met six times, with England winning five and drawing the other.
The less good news is that the one draw – a goalless stalemate during the ill-fated Euro 2016 campaign that did for manager Roy Hodgson – came in their only meeting at a finals.
Squad values compared
Slovakia have a few names that may be familiar to English football fans, such as Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka and Paris Saint-Germain defender Milan Skriniar.
But their squad is the third least valuable of all 24 teams at Euro 2024, estimated at just €155.3m, according to independent analysts Football Benchmark.
England, on the other hand, have the most valuable squad at the finals, estimated to be worth €1.382bn.
Permutations
The winner of this tie will go into the quarter-finals, where they will face the winner of the tie between holders Italy and Switzerland.
England’s prospective quarter-final is set to take place in Dusseldorf next Saturday 6 July at 5pm UK time.