Malta vs England LIVE commentary: Three Lions look to extend perfect start to Euro 2024 qualifying – kick-off time, team news and how to follow

England will look to continue their perfect start to the Euro 2024 qualifying campaign when they travel to face Malta on Friday night.

The Three Lions are comfortably top of Group C having beaten their two main rivals, Italy and Ukraine, during March’s international break.

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And with Italy in Nations League action, Gareth Southgate’s men can open up a six-point gap at the top when they face minnows Malta.

Malta are bottom of Group C and have lost all five of their matches against England in all competitions by an aggregate score of 14-1.

Malta vs England: talkSPORT coverage

This Euro 2024 qualifier will take place on Friday, June 16.

talkSPORT will have live coverage of the game at the Ta’ Qali National Stadium, with kick-off set for 7:45pm UK time.

Adrian Durham will be your presenter, while commentary will come from Jim Proudfoot and former England defender Stuart Pearce.

talkSPORT.com will also be running a live blog of all the action as well.

To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream.

You can also listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.

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Malta vs England: Team news

Lewis Dunk has pulled out of the England squad through injury, with Levi Colwill training in his place.

Jude Bellingham is still in the Three Lions’ camp but won’t play a part due to a knee issue of his own.

Manchester City’s Champions League stars reported back for England duty on Tuesday after they were granted extra time off.

John Stones, Kyle Walker, Kalvin Phillips, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish will all be assessed to see if they can take part against Malta.

Goalkeepers: Sam Johnstone (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal)

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle United), Kyle Walker (Manchester City)

Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Kalvin Phillips (Manchester City), Declan Rice (West Ham United)

Forwards: Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), James Maddison (Leicester City), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Callum Wilson (Newcastle United)

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Malta vs England: Match facts

• England have won 19 of their last 20 European Championship qualifying matches – the exception was a 2-1 away defeat at the Czech Republic in October 2019.
• Across 226 matches in World Cup and European Championship qualifiers, Malta have only been victorious on seven occasions (D26 L193) and just once in their last 21 games (D2 L18), a 3-0 home win against Cyprus in September 2021.
• The only goal England have conceded in five previous games against Malta was an own goal by goalkeeper Richard Wright in a 2-1 friendly victory in Ta’Qali in June 2000.
• Malta have lost all five of their matches against England in all competitions by an aggregate score of 14-1, with this the first meeting since a 4-0 England win in September 2017 in a World Cup qualifier.
• Only Mike Tresor (24) registered more assists in the 2022-23 Belgian Jupiler Pro League season than Malta’s Teddy Teuma did for Union SG (12), while only Trésor (109) created more chances than Teuma (87).
• England captain and record scorer Harry Kane has scored in all but two of his 15 appearances in European Championship qualifying, scoring 17 goals in total and finding the net in his last 10 appearances (14 goals). Kane has also found the net in his last seven away appearances for club and country, netting eight goals.
• England are unbeaten in their last 29 matches in all competitions when scoring the first goal (W27 D2), keeping a clean sheet in 24 of those games. The last time they lost when scoring first was against the Czech Republic in October 2019.
• Malta have lost their last three matches in all competitions, after losing just three of their previous eight games (W4 D1 L3). They last suffered more consecutive defeats between March 2019 and September 2020 (10 in a row).