England line up at World Cup 2018: Probable XI for Tunisia opener

Gareth Southgate told his England players how they will line up against Tunisia several days ago but the rest of the country will have to wait until around 6pm to see the first Three Lions side of the World Cup.

Southgate’s 3-5-2 has been the agreed-upon formation for some time now but several important spots in the squad remained in doubt until the days leading up to England’s Volgograd opener.

The three key battles were at left wing-back, left-sided centre-back and the anchorman in midfield. Manchester United’s Ashley Young is set to beat Danny Rose to the first of those positions, the 32-year-old making his World Cup debut eight years after being cut from Fabio Capello’s squad in South Africa.

Whilst Southgate has opted for experience in Young over Rose he is expected to take the more youthful Harry Maguire over Chelsea’s Gary Cahill to partner John Stones and Kyle Walker in defence. Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has been handed the task of shielding the backline.

Meanwhile the Tunisian side contains a few familiar faces for English football fans, most notably Leicester centre-back Yohan Benalouane and Wahbi Khazri, who spent last season at Rennes on loan from Sunderland. The French side converted him from a wide playmaker into a central attacker and he is expected to lead the line for the Eagles of Carthage at the Volgograd Arena.

Tunisia XI (4-2-3-1): Hassen; Syam Ben Youssef, Bronn, Benalouane, Maaloul; Skhiri, Sassi; Sliti, Khaoui, Badri; Khazri

England XI (3-5-2): Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire; Trippier, Lingard, Henderson, Alli, Young; Sterling, Kane