The Three Lions boss will be able to call upon Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, two scorers in Dallas when England beat Croatia 4-2 back in June, as well as the likes of Alex Scott and the in-form Anthony Gordon.
asserted
England → call → Scott
But their second successive away match in the competition is to be, mostly, played behind closed doors.
asserted
match → play → doors
Why is Croatia vs England being played behind closed doors?
asserted
Croatia → play → doors
The partial ban on supporters attending Saturday’s match is part of a punishment handed down to Croatia following sanctions that date back to March 2025, and incidents involving fans around matches against France in the quarter-finals of the Nations League.
asserted
that → attend → League
The Croatian Football Federation (HNS) paid a fine of around £80,000 and faced disciplinary proceedings relating to fans’ racist and discriminatory behaviour.
asserted
Federation → pay → behaviour
Why is the ban only happening now?
asserted
ban → happen → ?
While Croatia have since hosted Montenegro, Gibraltar, the Faroe Islands, Belgium and Slovenia, those were all FIFA-sanctioned matches - either World Cup qualifiers or international friendlies.
asserted
those → host → Montenegro
As such, England are the first team to visit Croatia in a UEFA competition since the France match.
asserted
England → visit → match
Why can fans still attend Croatia vs England?
asserted
fans → attend → England
Slaven Bilic has returned for a second spell as Croatia manager, winning his first game back 2-1 against the Czech Republic last week before a 4-1 loss at the hands of world champions Spain.
asserted
Bilic → return → Spain
For Bilic's homecoming, he won't have the backing of the Croatia supporters.
asserted
he → have → supporters
According to a report in The Times, the stadium could be up to 75 per cent full due to Article 73 of UEFA’s disciplinary regulations which state that there are a series of exceptions related to those allowed to attend behind-closed-doors fixtures.
uncertain
which → accord → fixtures
The regulations state there is an exception for “children up to the age of 14 (duly accompanied) from schools and/or football academies invited to the match free of charge”.
asserted
regulations → state → charge
As per the Athletic, UEFA had initially anticipated around 3,000 children plus guardians would be in attendance.
asserted
children → anticipate → attendance
The HNS now expects between 5,500 and 6,000 children to attend, having been invited from football academies across Croatia, and from local schools in the Rijeka area.
asserted
children → expect → area
Furthermore, there will also be a small delegation of England supporters in attendance at the Stadion HNK Rijeka, which has a capacity of 8,279.
asserted
which → have → 8,279
How did England fans get tickets?
asserted
fans → get → tickets
The Football Association (FA) argued that England fans should not be punished by missing Saturday’s game, sparking a partial climbdown with the England Supporters Travel Club handed 100 complimentary tickets to give to active 2026-2028 England Supporters Travel Club members.
asserted
Club → argue → members
Fans reportedly had until midday on Friday to register their interest, with preference said to have been given to those with the most “caps” for attending previous matches.
uncertain
preference → have → matches
What has Thomas Tuchel said?
asserted
Tuchel → say → What
Speaking on Friday in his pre-match press conference, Tuchel - who does not have fond memories in Croatia as his last match as Chelsea boss was a Champions League defeat in Zagreb - said it’s “never nice” to play behind closed doors.
asserted
it → speak → doors
"First of all, I am happy for the children who will be at the match tomorrow that they have the chance to come and watch the game and players that close,” he said.
asserted
he → have → game
“I am glad that our 100 or 200 fans have the chance to be here.
asserted
fans → have → chance
It means a lot to us.
asserted
It → mean → us
The most loyal fans have the chance to watch the game.
asserted
fans → have → game
Everyone would love the atmosphere in the stadium - a proper football crowd which would be very, very different.
asserted
which → love → stadium
“This is a part we have to take into consideration.
asserted
we → have → consideration
We cannot switch off and be in holiday mood.
asserted
We → switch → mood
It might feel a bit like pre-season but it's not.
uncertain
it → feel → season
Have England played Croatia behind closed doors before?
asserted
England → play → doors
England's last visit to Rijeka to face Croatia in October 2018 - also in a Nations League clash - was played behind closed doors.
asserted
visit → face → doors
That was a result of a swastika being marked on the pitch ahead of Croatia's Euro 2016 qualifier against Italy.
asserted
swastika → mark → Italy
It was England's first senior international fixture to be put behind closed doors, with a goalless draw played out in an empty stadium.
asserted
draw → put → stadium
The Aporia
.jpg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
