Euro 2024: England to battle, Belgium at Wembley

England will step up their Euro 2024 preparations with a double header against Brazil and Belgium in March at Wembley.

The Three Lions will face two of the other sides ranked inside the top five in the world by FIFA on March 23 and 26 respectively, in the final international break before Gareth Southgate names his squad for next summer’s European Championships finals in Germany.

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England last faced Brazil in the build-up to the 2018 World Cup, with that match serving as one of the first outings of the 3-5-2 formation which would see them to their best finish at the tournament in 28 years.

The Three Lions have faced the five-time World Cup champions 26 times in all, with the last of just four wins against the South Americans coming in a 2-1 friendly win under Roy Hodgson in 2013.

England have more recent history with Belgium, having faced them twice during that 2018 tournament, including in the third and fourth-placed play-off, before a win and a defeat in the 2020/21 edition of the Nations League.

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England manager Southgate said: “I am happy to have two strong matches in March as we build towards the EURO finals. It is important we take every opportunity to test ourselves against top opposition.

“Before then, we have our last qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia coming up. Getting two positive results is essential if we are to make sure of being top seeds in the EURO draw next month.

“We can’t afford to think the job is done as there is still work to do, while every second for us together in camp counts if we are to give ourselves the best chance of success next summer.”