Poll: Is Wright right? Would England be underdogs against Wales?
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They’ve both booked their spot at Euro 2016 after very different qualifying campaigns and for many the prospect of seeing England and Wales clash in France next summer would prove an exciting proposition.
For one former Three Lions striker, despite Roy Hodgson leading his men to a 100 per cent record in qualifying, the Dragons would be the ones to go in with the upper hand were they to meet right now.
Arsenal legend Ian Wright believes that the facile nature of England’s qualifying success may mean that they would lack the fire and momentum that their Welsh counterparts would possess after a barnstorming campaign.
“Wales and England going at it, for the British Isles it would be magnificent,” he said after England’s victory over France at an emotional Wembley on Tuesday.
“But I wouldn’t want Wales at the moment just because of the vibe in the country and in the squad, especially watching England the other day against Spain.
“Wales against England right now, I’m sure Wales would feel like they’d be favourites going into that.”
Before qualifying began Chris Coleman’s side were odds-against to make it to the tournament, while England were the slightly more prohibitive 1/50.
Victories against Belgium, Israel and Cyprus booked Wales’ spot as Group B runners-up, to qualify for only their second major tournament.
England on the other hand recorded victories against the likes of San Marino, Estonia and Lithuania, opponents that failure to defeat would have resulted in uproar from fans.
The latest FIFA rankings see Hodgson’s men come out on top in ninth place compared to Wales’ 15th (down from eighth last week).
But while the Three Lions probably have the all-round stronger squad, they do not have a certain Gareth Bale.
So we are putting it to you, is Wright wrong (sorry)? Or does the 33-capped striker have a point?
Tell us who you would have as favourites if the two sides were to meet right now.
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All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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