Finland vs England Prediction, Betting Tips and Lineups: Jude Bellingham backed in the shots market

England bid to bounce back away to Finland this evening after a miserable defeat to Greece at Wembley last week.

Matthew O’Regan has previewed the Nations League clash and delivered his best bets below, featuring Jude Bellingham in the shots on target market.

England started the post-Gareth Southgate era strongly, with Lee Carsley leading the Three Lions to successive 2-0 wins away at Ireland and at home to Finland, respectively. However, at home to underdogs Greece, many people expected a walkover, but Ivan Jovanovic’s side defied the odds, coming out 2-1 winners thanks to a Vangelis Pavledis brace.

Finland have had a disastrous start to their Nations League campaign, losing all three games in a tepid campaign. They started with a 3-0 loss at Greece, registering just six shots all game. This was followed up by a 2-0 loss to England, in which they registered just two shots. A loss at home to an Ireland side who have only beaten competitively since 2022 is an indictment of where this Finnish side is, so they could be in for a long game against the Three Lions.

Lee Carsley went adventurous in his team selection against Greece, selecting Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Anthony Gordan, and Cole Palmer in an extremely attacking side. Trent Alexander Arnold and Rico Lewis also featured at full-back - further boosting England’s attacking prowess.

It remains to be seen whether Carsley will be as bold with his selection again, but with England needing a win to salvage their Nations League campaign, the Irishman may be forced to play a similar side again.

Finland vs England Lineups

Finland Starting XI

Hradecky; Alho, Hoskonen, Ivanov, Uronen; Kamara, Schuller, Peltola; Jensen, Kallman, Keskinen.

England Starting XI

Henderson; Walker, Stones, Guehi, Alexander-Arnold; Gomes, Rice; Bellingham, Palmer, Grealish, Kane.

In the defeat to Greece, manager Lee Carsley experimented with an attacking team, with Foden, Gordon, Saka, Bellingham and Palmer all occupying positions in the final third, leading to greater attacking freedom for the Three Lions, as well as defensive fragility.

It was rare to see Bellingham, in particular, given so much attacking freedom, with the Real Madrid star so often confined to a more defensive position under Southgate.

In a tepid performance from the hosts, the 21-year-old's attacking prowess was a rare bright spot, with Bellingham having a long-range thunderbolt saved early on. He then equalised late on with a fine strike past Odisseas Vlachodimos in the Greek goal.

With Harry Kane expected to miss out again through injury, Bellingham could find himself further forward on Sunday, so it would not be a surprise to see him replicate last season’s Madrid numbers.

The powerful midfielder scored 19 La Liga goals last year, averaging 0.74 per 90. He also averaged 1.36 shots on target per 90 as he found himself in more attacking areas.

Despite playing a more defensive role in the Euros, Bellingham scored twice. At 4/5, he looks an appeal price to have at least one short on target on Sunday.

In the extreme attacking cohort fielded on Thursday, Cole Palmer was one of many attackers. The Chelsea star has been in exhilarating form this season, scoring six goals and assisting five in just seven starts.

Due to his advanced position on the pitch, Palmer rarely finds himself in defensive positions. He has made just two fouls this season in the Premier League despite playing 596 minutes.

On Thursday, Palmer failed to make a foul again, with England committing just 10 fouls.

In their three Nations League games thus far, Finland’s opponents are making just 7.33 fouls per game. England should dominate the ball from the off, meaning there is limited opportunity for Palmer to commit a foul, with bet365 offering odds of 8/11 for the youngster to have under 0.5 fouls.

Finland vs England Bet Boosts