England vs Northern Ireland prediction: How will Women’s World Cup qualifier play out today?

All you need to know as the Lionesses look to continue their 100 per cent start to World Cup qualifying

Jamie Braidwood
Saturday 23 October 2021 14:19 BST
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England continue their 2023 World Cup qualifying campaign tonight when they host Northern Ireland in a historic fixture for the Lionesses at Wembley Stadium.

Sarina Wiegman’s side cruised to 10-0 and 8-0 wins against Luxembourg and North Macedonia to open their qualifying campaign last month and the England manager has picked another strong squad for this week’s matches against Northern Ireland and Latvia.

Ellen White is expected to win her 98th cap as she closes in on Kelly Smith’s all-time England goalscoring record. The Manchester City striker is three goals short of Smith’s tally of 46 strikes and will hope to add to her record against Kenny Shiels’ side in Group D.

Northern Ireland also opened their qualifying campaign with back-to-back wins over Latvia and Luxembourg, and they will play their part in what is a ground-breaking fixture for England, who are set to play a competitive fixture at the new Wembley for the first time.

Here’s everything you need to know before the match.

When is England vs Northern Ireland?

The match will kick off at 5:15pm BST on Saturday 23 October.

How can I watch it?

It will be shown live on ITV 1, with coverage starting from 4:30pm. The match will also be streamed live on the ITV Hub.

What is the team news?

England are without the injured Manchester City trio of captain Steph Houghton, right back Lucy Bronze and goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck, but Keira Walsh has returned to the squad after missing September’s matches.

Manchester United’s Katie Zelem and Alessia Russo and Aston Villa goalkeeper Hannah Hampton could make their England debuts, but Sarina Wiegman is expected to name a strong side and is unlikely to make too many changes from her September line-ups.

Leah Williamson is expected to continue to captain the side in Houghton’s absence and resume her midfield role, despite playing in defence for Arsenal this season.

Northern Ireland have been hit with a double blow as both of their Women’s Super League players have been ruled out of the Wembley contest. Everton striker Simone Magill is unavailable due to a personal issue while defender Rebecca Holloway is considered a major injury doubt.

Possible line-ups

England: Earps; Daly, Bright, Greenwood, Stokes; Toone, Williamson, Kirby; Hemp, White, Mead

Northern Ireland: Burns; McKenna, Nelson, McFadden, Vance; McCarron, Furness, Callaghan, McGuiness; Wade, Wilson

Odds

England: 1/50

Draw: 13/1

Northern Ireland: 18/1

Prediction

These two sides met in February, prior to the World Cup qualification draw, with England running out 6-0 winners at St George’s Park. In front of a Wembley crowd, it could be a similar story this time. England 5-0 Northern Ireland

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