England are now fully focused on the 2022 World Cup as the Three Lions shine in Qatar this winter.
Gareth Southgate’s side sealed their place at the showpiece tournament by recording their biggest victory in a competitive international game when they beat San Marino 10-0 last year.
England have a vast array of talent in almost every position and Southgate will have to whittle that down over the next few weeks.
Southgate is confident his men can win the tournament but admitted they will need to be “nearly perfect” to triumph in the Arabian Gulf.
However, England’s preparations were rocked in the summer, failing to win in six and suffering relegation to the Nations League.
The Three Lions have lost to Hungary twice in recent months and Southgate have come under increasing pressure following their poor run.
A fiery comeback in their 3-3 draw with Germany at the end of September offered some hope, but England have no other game left before their World Cup opener on 21 november.
So what do we know about England’s preparations, when will they have to finalize their squad and where will they be based? talkSPORT.com has a look…
England at the 2022 World Cup: when will the squad be confirmed?
Southgate will announce their squad for Qatar on or around Thursday, October 20.
That’s 30 days before the opening match of the World Cup and the date that FIFA has set as the deadline for all 32 teams to submit their full squads.
Southgate has the option to name his team earlier, but he waited until the deadline to do so in Russia in 2018.
Southgate gave a hint about his World Cup plans when he announced his squad for England’s Nations League games against Italy and Germany at the end of September.
England will not have warm-up matches before the start of the tournament.
England squad for Nations League matches in September
Guardians
- Nick Pope (Newcastle), Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal), Dean Henderson (Nottingham Forest)
Defenders
- Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Conor Coady (on loan to Everton from Wolves), Eric Dier (Tottenham), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Reece James (Chelsea), Harry Maguire (Manchester United) , Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Fikayo Tomori (AC Milan), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle), Kyle Walker (Manchester City)
Midfielders
- Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Kalvin Phillips (Manchester City), Declan Rice (West Ham), James Ward-Prowse (Southampton)
Attackers
- Tammy Abraham (Roma), Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Chelsea), Ivan Toney (Brentford)
England at the 2022 World Cup: where will they be based?
Southgate’s side are set to be treated like royalty when they stay at the Souq Al Wakra Hotel in Qatar later this year.
According to Sportsmail, a reservation has been made for the start of the tournament in November.
The Souq Al Wakra hotel is alcohol-free and has a private beach, fitness center and hydromassage pool as well as a spa and several restaurants.
England will then train at the Saud bin Abdulrahman Stadium for the duration of their World Cup stay.
England at the 2022 World Cup: what shirt will they wear?
The Three Lions kit has been created by Nike since 2013 but the latest edition has divided opinion since its reveal.
The home shirt is a combination of England’s traditional white backdrop with a mix of sky blue and navy blue on the shoulders and sleeves. The badge is surrounded by a blue outline with the Nike logo to its right.
The red away shirt has a retro feel with a navy collar reminiscent of the shirt worn in the 1990 World Cup in Italy. The sleeves also contain a blue edge.
It remains to be seen whether Southgate will put on his infamous vest again…
England at the 2022 World Cup: who will they face?
Group B
England v Iran – 4:00 p.m. local/1:00 p.m. UK – Monday 21/11
England v USA – 10pm local/7pm UK – Fri 25/11
Wales v England – 10pm local / 7pm UK – Tue 29/11
If England finish 1st
Round of 16 – 10pm local/7pm UK – Sun 4/12 (potentially Ecuador or Senegal)
Quarterfinal – 10pm local/7pm UK – Sat 10/12 (potentially France or Argentina)
Semi final – 10pm local/7pm UK – Wed 14/12 (potentially Belgium, Germany, Portugal or Spain)
If England finish 2nd
Round of 16 – 6pm local/3pm UK – Sat 3/12 (potentially Netherlands)
Quarterfinal – 10pm local/7pm UK – Fri 9/12 (potentially Argentina or Denmark)
Semi final – 10pm local/7pm UK – Tue 13/12 (potentially Spain or Croatia)
Final
Match for 3rd place – 6pm local/3pm UK – Sat 17/12
Final – 6pm local/3pm UK – Sun 18/12
England at the 2022 World Cup: how did they get there?
The Three Lions led Group I in UEFA’s World Cup qualification process.
Southgate’s men were unbeaten in their ten matches, winning eight of them.
They scored 39 goals, the most of any team, while Harry Kane was co-top scorer in UEFA qualifying with 12.
England empathetically sealed their World Cup place in the last two rounds in mid-November, beating Albania 5-0 before putting San Marino to the sword as well.
Watch the World Cup with talkSPORT
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In a huge covered room under the arches of Waterloo in London, we will bring you live screenings of every World Cup game.
There will be Q&A with talkSPORT talent, you’ll be part of our live shows and plenty of food and drink will be on offer too.
Come and have the best World Cup fan experience in London – and enjoy a free pint – with tickets for the England and Wales group stage matches on sale now HERE!