England will play their final two games before the World Cup later this month as their preparations step up a gear.
Gareth Southgate will announce his squad for the upcoming fixtures on Thursday, with players making their final audition for a place on the plane to Qatar.
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The 2022 World Cup will begin on November 20 and England will face Iran in their opening game of the tournament.
The Three Lions start their campaign on November 21 before playing USA and Wales in the following eight days.
England’s opponents this month
The international break begins after this weekend’s domestic fixtures and England will face two European heavyweights in quick succession.
On Friday, September 23, Southgate’s side will travel to face Italy at the San Siro in the Nations League.
They will then host Germany three days later at Wembley.
After losing two and drawing two of their Nations League games so far, the Three Lions sit bottom of Group A3.
They will be keen to turn that poor form around with no remaining fixtures ahead of the World Cup after these games.
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So no warm-up games?
There will be no warm-up games ahead of the tournament due to the players being expected to meet up with the squad on November 14.
With only six days until the start of the World Cup after the players join up, there will be no time to fit in any other fixtures.
This is happening because the Premier League will continue up until November 13, only a week before the tournament begins.
The lack of warm-up games will mean that the squad will not have played with each other for almost two months ahead of the opening fixture.
There could also be concerns over player fitness due to them being overwhelmed with the quick turnaround.
This has now been exaggerated with the postponement of fixtures last weekend meaning the Premier League schedule may get even busier ahead of the tournament.
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England’s World Cup opener
England’s opening game in Qatar is against Iran on Monday, November 21.
The match will kick-off at 1pm UK time and will be played in Al Rayyan at the Khalifa International Stadium.
The Three Lions will then take on the USA four days later at the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Kohr with that game kicking off at 7pm UK time.
To complete the group stage, Southgate’s side will then face Wales at 7pm UK time on November 29 at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan.
