Group B England Vs Wales Match Preview
A rivalry dating back 137 years will reach a new level of intensity in Lens on Thursday when England and Wales meet at a major tournament for the first time.
The fixture began in January 1879 and for exactly 100 years from 1884 was part of the now disbanded British Championship.
As the Welsh won their opening Group B game 2-1 against Slovakia before England conceded a last-minute goal in a 1-1 draw with Russia
Wales have won only 14 of more than 100 previous meetings -- the last in 1984 -- and lost all four European Championship qualifying matches, in 1966-67 and 2011
Match Facts
Head-to-head
- This will be the 102nd time that England and Wales have played each other, although this is the first time they have met in the finals of a major tournament.
- England have won 66 matches, Wales 14 and there have been 21 draws.
- Wales have not beaten England since a 1-0 victory in Wrexham on 2 May 1984, when Mark Hughes scored the only goal on his debut.
- England have won the last four games between the countries without conceding a goal. They triumphed 2-0 at home and 1-0 away during qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, and then won 2-0 away and 1-0 at home in qualifying for Euro 2012. Ashley Young was the last player to score in the fixture.
- Wales manager Chris Coleman made just one appearance under current England manager Roy Hodgson at Blackburn Rovers in 1997-98.
- Coleman and Hodgson have both managed Fulham and had spells as players at Crystal Palace.
England
- England had not lost over 90 or 120 minutes in 23 European Championship fixtures, going back to a 3-2 defeat by Croatia in November 2007.
- Roy Hodgson's side won all ten of their Euro 2016 qualifiers, making them just the sixth team to achieve the feat, after France (1992, 2004), Czech Republic (2000) and Germany and Spain (both 2012).
- This is only the second time England will face another country from the UK in a major tournament, they won the first 2-0 against Scotland at Euro 1996.
- England mustered nine shots against Russia in the first-half, which is the most they have managed in the opening 45 minutes during a Euros final match since they had 11 against Croatia in 2004.
- At 25 years and 293 days, England's starting 11 against Russia was their second-youngest ever at a major finals after a 2002 World Cup match with Sweden (25y 206d).
- England have failed to score more than once in 13 of their last 14 matches at major tournaments.
- Against Russia, Eric Dier became the eighth Tottenham player to score at a major tournament for England, more than any other club.
Wales
- Wales have conceded in each of their last five games (including friendlies), their worst run of conceding since March 2013 (11).
- Aaron Ramsey has had a hand in three goals in his last three games for Wales (two goals, one assist).
- Gareth Bale scored with Wales' first ever shot on target at a European Championship finals.
- Bale is the first British player to score a direct free-kick in a Euro finals game.
- Hal Robson Kanu's goal was his first for Wales since October 2014 (v Cyprus), which was also the last Welsh goal in a competitive game not scored by either Bale or Ramsey.
- Wales are the first British side to win their opening game in a European Championship finals tournament
UK grinds to a halt for 'Battle of Britain' costing the economy £200m as workers down tools to watch England play Wales
Pubs filled up, supporters flocked to fanzones around the country and many schools stopped lessons so pupils could watch the game in Group B, or closed early for the day so children could get home in time to view the match
Group B England beat Wales 2-1
Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge came from the bench to score as England came from behind to defeat Wales 2-1
But Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge came on at half-time and after the former had equalised in the 56th minute, the latter smuggled in a stoppage-time winner that fired Roy Hodgson's men to the top of the group.
Wales are a point back in second place, above Slovakia on head-to-head record, and need to beat Russia in Toulouse on Monday to guarantee one of the two automatic qualifying berths.
A draw against Slovakia in Saint-Etienne will suffice for England
Racegoers Emma Smith-Lett (left) and Hetty Kelly (right) were sporting England and Wales-themed hats as they prepared for the game at Royal Ascot today
England fans pose with their own Three Lions as they enjoy the atmosphere in Lens this afternoon
The Wales fans turned their area of the stadium into a sea of red as they proudly showed off their flags
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