England are favourites to win Euro 2024 and Gareth Southgate's men are aiming to enhance their reputation with a victory over Brazil in Saturday's friendly international at Wembley.
The Selecao have been stung by three consecutive defeats in World Cup qualifying, including a 1-0 home loss to world champions Argentina, and they face an England side packed with in-form attacking players.
- England to win & over 2.5 goals
- Second half to be highest-scoring half
- Harry Maguire to score at any time
England Can turn On The Style
England and Brazil both suffered painful quarter-final defeats at the 2022 World Cup but the Three Lions have responded to their Qatar disappointment more positively than the Selecao.
Southgate's side cruised through Euro 2024 qualifying, beating European champions Italy 2-1 in Naples and 3-1 in October's return fixture at Wembley.
Brazil, in contrast, are struggling in the ultra-competitive South American 2026 World Cup qualification tournament, taking just one point from their last four games.
They drew 1-1 at home to Venezuela before defeats away to Uruguay and Colombia and a 1-0 loss to Argentina in a heated encounter in Rio de Janeiro.
Ace goalkeepers Alisson of Liverpool and Ederson of Manchester City are injured for Brazil so backing England to win a game featuring over 2.5 goals looks the best bet.
They thrashed North Macedonia 7-0 in a Wembley qualifier last June and have won their last 12 international friendlies with six of the last nine producing at least three goals.
Manchester United's Kobbie Mainoo is the latest addition to England's thrilling list of attacking options including Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham, Manchester City's Phil Foden and Arsenal's Bukayo Saka and strikers Harry Kane and Ollie Watkins, who have had prolific goalscoring campaigns for Bayern Munich and Aston Villa.
ENGLAND TO WIN AND OVER 2.5 GOALS
Expect Some Late Drama
Brazil's three group games at the 2022 World Cup produced four goals, scored in the 62nd, 73rd, 83rd and 92nd minutes, and they conceded a 117th-minute equaliser against Croatia in the quarter-finals before losing on penalties.
The late drama has continued in the Selecao's recent matches and backing the second half to produce more goals than the first half could prove profitable on Saturday.
It has been a winning wager in seven of their nine games since the tournament in Qatar including September's 5-1 win over Bolivia, which was 1-0 at half-time.
There were four second-half goals in last June's 4-2 friendly defeat to Senegal and only two of the nine goals scored in Brazil's last five matches came in the first 45 minutes.
England's attacking substitutes will be highly motivated given the fierce battle for places in Southgate's Euro 2024 squad so the intensity levels are unlikely to drop much in the latter stages of Saturday's game.
SECOND HALF HIGHEST SCORING HALF
Maguire To Be Set Piece Threat
Harry Maguire has had a tough couple of years at club level but he remains a favourite of England boss Southgate and his aerial prowess at set-piece situations is a great weapon for the Three Lions.
Maguire scored in his most recent Premier League appearance for Manchester United, last month's 2-1 defeat to Fulham, and he has an impressive tally of seven goals in 62 caps for England.
He scored three times in four World Cup qualifiers in September and November 2021 and could get chances against Brazil. Former Manchester City centre-back Nicolas Otamendi scored a towering header from a corner to seal Argentina's 1-0 win in Rio and England's Maguire poses a similar threat to the visiting defence.
HARRY MAGUIRE TO SCORE ANYTIME
