England v San Marino Tips: Bet on Stones to cash in against World Cup minnows

With a break from the hectic schedule of domestic football, we head to an International break where the England national team welcomes San Marino to Wembley Stadium on Thursday, 19:45 on ITV, for the first match of their World Cup 2022 qualifiers.  

Southgate's men have been placed in group I with Albania, Andorra, Hungary, Poland and San Marino. Southgate will be looking to start qualification for Qatar 2022 with a dominant display against the competitions minnows but may use this game to get a finer look at some of the players on the fringe of the squad.   

Impressive domestic form sees former Internationals John Stones, Luke Shaw and Jesse Lingard all return to the England squad for the qualifiers and could all feature on Thursday. Both Rashford and Bellingham are unlikely to feature here due to an ankle injury (Rashford) and Borussia Dortmund not wanting Bellingham to travel to England, so he may only feature away against Albania.  

Predicted Lineup: Pope – Maguire, Stones, Walker – Shaw, Rice, Phillips, Trippier – Foden, Calvert-Lewin, Saka. (3-4-3).

In a match that can be extremely hard to find value, heading to the first goalscorer market has given us what looks a big price. Southgate is expected to rest Kane and start with Dominic Calvert-Lewin (DCL) in a lone central role. With a 3-4-3 formation looking the likely go-to for Southgate, the wing backs will play a big role in breaking down this San Marino side by putting balls into the box.  

DCL is a huge threat in the air, often out-jumping any defender in his way. The Everton striker is priced as short as 8/13 to score a brace and 2/1 to score a hat-trick and I believe this 3/1 (25%) about him scoring the first goal in the match looks a great price. With Kane not starting, DCL should assume penalty duty which also makes this price even more appealing. I would advise backing this each way with Bet365 offering unlimited places at 1/3 of the odds, returning your stake if he score anytime.

The English centre half has been a revelation since making regular starts at Manchester City and has been a huge aid in them looking incredibly solid. A much deserved call up for the 26 year old that has been out of the England team for a long while now and could have a huge impact on bolstering this English defence heading into a major tournament. 

Along with his defensive capabilities, he has been a regular scorer for Guardiolas side. In his last 13 starts, he has scored five times (38%) and is priced at an appealing 4/1 (boosted) to bag against the minnows of the tournament. This recent record alone shows there is some value in this price and when you include the opposition he will be up against and the amount of corners England could rack up, he will most definitely get an opportunity to find the net.

For the long shot, I have to have a punt on the correct scores. The England players will be out to impress Southgate and stake a claim for the Euros in the summer. With so much talent in this side, positions are up for grabs in almost every position and performances in these qualifiers could have a big effect on how Southgate decides to set up for Euro2021. 

With the players of this San Marino side only playing football as a hobby rather than a profession, they still remain immovable from the bottom of the FIFA world rankings. England have played San Marino four times this century, winning 6-0, 5-0, 8-0 and 5-0. On Thursday evening I expect something very similar and at a boosted price with William Hill which is much shorter elsewhere, I think we will get a good run for our money on the 7-0 correct score.