England return to Euro 2024 qualifying action on Tuesday when they take on reigning champions Italy at a sold-out Wembley Stadium.
Manager Gareth Southgate named a much-changed line-up for Friday's home friendly against Australia with the only goal of the game coming just before the hour mark courtesy of Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins.
Next up will be the Group C match against Italy with the Three Lions sitting top of the table having won four and drawn one of their games so far. The Azzurri are third, six points behind.
It will be the fourth time the teams have clashed since Italy won the Euro 2020 final after beating Southgate's side on penalties.
But this will be the first reunion under the famous Wembley arch with their previous meetings coming in Wolverhampton, Milan and then Naples.
It has been turbulent period for the Italians who failed to reach last year's World Cup finals in Qatar then saw manager Roberto Mancini quit to take over the Saudi Arabia national team.
Luciano Spalletti – who guided Napoli to their first Serie A title in more than 30 years last season – is now the coach of a new-look team that host Malta on Saturday evening before heading over to London.
Last time out, England ran out 2-1 winners against Mancini's side at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona when Harry Kane scored a penalty just before half-time that saw him overtake Wayne Rooney to become England's all-time leading scorer on 54 goals.
But Southgate believes the Italians are an improved outfit under Spalletti as England look to seal qualification for next year's finals in Germany.
“Italy look revitalised under Spalletti,” Southgate said. “They were excellent against Ukraine last month. They're a top-10 nation.
“We've talked about these top-10 games and the importance of them, the challenge of them.
Italy 1 England 2: Player ratings
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ITALY RATINGS: Gianluigi Donnarumma - 6. Displayed excellent reflexes to tip a Bellingham shot over the bar in the 12th minute. Had next to nothing to do in the second half. AFP -
Giovanni Di Lorenzo - 4. Carelessly handled the ball while challenging Kane to give the Three Lions a penalty. Reuters -
Leonardo Spinazzola - 5. Endured a torrid first half against the in-form Bukayo Saka. Had very little defensive work to do in the second half but got forward well to support in attack. Getty Images -
Rafael Toloi - 5 Gave Rice too much space to get a shot off and give England the lead in the 13th minute. Looked more solid after that early gaffe. Getty Images -
Francesco Acerbi - 6. A quiet game for Acerbi in the middle of Italy's backline. Stuck to his job well and had a half chance to draw Italy level in the second half. EPA -
Nicolo Barella - 6. His combative spirit saw him get into a number of scuffles in the first half. A tireless runner, but he lacked that bit of quality to provide the final pass to breach England’s backline. AP -
Jorginho - 5. Worked hard at the base of Italy’s midfield but got overrun by England's more athletic midfielders in the first half. Improved in the second half. AFP -
Marco Verrati - 7. Played a brilliant pass to find Pellegrini in the box early in the second half. Helped Italy win the midfield battle after the break. EPA -
Domenico Berardi - 5. Struggled against Shaw and failed to provide much of a threat to Pickford’s goal. Getty Images -
Lorenzo Pellegrini - 7. Delivered two dangerous corners to cause panic in the England penalty area at the beginning of the second half. Found Rategui with a disguised pass to bring the Azzurri back into the game. Getty Images -
Mateo Retegui - 8. Should have at least tested Pickford from a corner in the sixth minute. Capped off his debut with a side-footed finish into the bottom corner to bring Italy back into the game. EPA -
SUBS: Matteo Politano (Berardi, 62) - 6. Almost got on the end of a Gnonto cross in the 77th minute. Getty Images -
Bryan Cristante (Barrela, 62) - 6. Worked hard after coming on but couldn't help Italy grab the equaliser. Getty Images -
Wilfred Gnonto (Pellegrini, 69) - 7. Came on and caused a lot of problems for England on the right-hand side. Getty Images -
Sandro Tonali (Jorginho, 69) - 6. Denied by a Stones block in the 75th minute. Added an extra body to the Azzurri midfield to help the dominate the game in the second half. Getty Images -
ENGLAND RATINGS: Jordan Pickford - 6. Displayed his sweeper-keeper role to deny Berardi in the 30th minute. Made two decent saves to deny Italy an equaliser. Getty Images -
Kyle Walker - 6. Had a good game against Pellegrini in the first half but really struggled against the more tricky Gnonto as Italy piled on the pressure in search of an equaliser. Getty Images -
Luke Shaw - 5. Defended and attacked well in the first half. Picked up a first yellow card for time wasting in the 78th minute and just a minute later, picked up a second booking for a foul. EPA -
Harry Maguire - 4. At fault for Italy’s first goal as he made a misplaced pass, needlessly jumped in to foul Barella whilst trying to recover the ball, and left Rategui in acres of space to bring the Azzurri back into the game. Looked shaky as the Italy piled on the pressure. Getty Images -
John Stones - 7. Made a good last-man block to deny Retegui in the 39th minute. Made a number of last-ditch blocks to deny Italy in the second half and looked like the more assured defender next to Maguire. AFP -
Declan Rice - 9. Had a very busy start to the game with Italy applying early pressure. Gave England the lead with a close-range left-footed finish in the 13th minute. Made a well-timed sliding challenge to stop Barella at the edge of the box in the 27th minute. AP Photo -
Jude Bellingham - 6. Tested Donnarumma with a rasping shot in the 12th minute. Enjoyed a lively first half but struggled to get involved in the second. Getty Images -
Kalvin Philips - 6. Had a chance to play Kane through on goal but chose to shoot and hit his shot wide in the 32nd minute. Provided good cover for the Three Lions backline next to Rice. AP Photo -
Jack Grealish - 5. Inexplicably missed an open goal when Kane found him with a low cross in the 46th minute. Failed to really get into the game in the second half. Getty Images -
Bukayo Saka - 7. Had England's first shot on target with a tame shot in the eighth minute. Was a thorn in the flesh of Spinazzola all through the game. AP Photo -
Harry Kane - 8. His blocked shot from close range ricochetted into the path of Rice to give England the lead. Became England’s top scorer from the penalty spot on the stroke of half-time. Getty Images -
SUBS: Phil Foden (Grealish, 69) - N/A. Surprisingly subbed off early in the 81st minute due to a red card to Shaw. Getty Images -
Kieran Trippier (Foden, 81) - N/A. Came on to try and help England close out the game with 10 men. EPA -
Reece James (Saka, 85) - N/A. A solid short cameo as Southgate looked to hold on for the win. Getty Images -
Conor Gallagher (Bellingham, 85) - N/A. Wonderful cameo. Was everywhere, breaking up play, tidying up. Getty Images
“We have the chance to qualify for the European Championships with two games to spare.
“But also it's a great test of where we are as a team and, yeah, it's a challenge we're really looking forward to.”
It will be a more familiar England line-up on Tuesday after Southgate made 10 changes from the team that won convincingly in Scotland last month against the Socceroos.
“It was great that they got the win. It was important to keep winning because if we if we lose the game or you give a goal away at the end then you leave here on a bit of a low. It sets the game up now with Italy.
“In the end, it's very hard to prepare the squad when they know ultimately this week really is about the Italy game and it's impossible to dress that up any other way.
“But for the players that played, for some of them their Wembley debut, for some of them their England debut. Massively important nights for them.”
Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah made his England debut as a second-half substitute against Australia, while versatile Chelsea defender Levi Colwill made his bow from the start.
“Important first steps for them,” Southgate said of the debutants, while match-winner Watkins' movement and positioning was praised after scoring on his first England appearance since March 2022.
Lewis Dunk's development continues to impress, with the Brighton defender winning his third cap in central defence alongside Fikayo Tomori, who was replaced by John Stones in the 62nd minute as he continues his recovery from a hip issue.
“Thirty minutes for John Stones was very important for us, to get him on to the pitch,” Southgate said of the Manchester City defender, who made his first Premier League appearance last weekend.
“We're managing that recovery carefully, we're combining really well with his club on all of that.
“But he's a world-class player, and it was great to get him up and running.”
