2014 World Cup qualifier preview: England v Ukraine

Roy Hodgson and Oleg Blokhin

England produced a five-star performance in their opening World Cup qualifier against Moldova last Friday, but Ukraine will pose a tougher challenge at Wembley on Tuesday.

It’s less than three months since England secured a hard-fought 1-0 win over the Euro 2012 co-hosts, who begin life without their influential captain Andriy Shevchenko.

The former Dynamo Kiev, AC Milan and Chelsea striker scored the last time Ukraine played at Wembley – in a 2010 World Cup qualifier – but ended his glittering 18-year career over the summer to embark on a new journey in politics.

The Eastern European outfit hope that Andriy Yarmolenko, the 22-year-old forward, can fill the huge void left by their most famous player. However, Ukraine will need more players than Yarmolenko to hit top gear in order to take anything from an in-form England side who will be looking to make it six points out of a possible six.

Roy Hodgson declared himself “very pleased” after watching his side comprehensively outplay Moldova at the Zimbru Stadium in Chisinau but, once the final whistle was blown, his focus immediately switched to the Ukraine clash.

"Tuesday is against one of the teams who could be one of the favourites to win the group,” he said. “I hope the recovery time is sufficient and the players can muster their strength again to give another good performance."

Hodgson will, however, be without the services of John Terry – who scored against Ukraine in April 2009 and made the controversial goal-line clearance which denied Oleg Blokhin’s side a European Championship point in June.

Blokhin revealed that referee Viktor Kassai’s decision not to award Marko Dević’s goal still haunts his team, but insists his players must look to the future and take the bull by the horns now that Shevchenko has departed.

“That's history and we have to look forward,” the 1975 European Football of the Year stated. “And we must do that without the help of Shevchenko. He was a born leader and we will need some time to re-adjust to playing without him.

"I have said to my young players that against England one of them must be a leader of the team. They are all adults and it is time for them to take on the leader's virtues."

The Ukrainians will be up against a central defence comprised of Gary Cahill and Joleon Lescott with the influential Terry out nursing an ankle injury sustained against Moldova, while his Chelsea team-mate Ashley Cole is also unavailable with his own ankle problem.

Hodgson also has concerns over Chelsea forward Daniel Sturridge and Arsenal winger Theo Walcott, who both missed training on Monday through illness.

But Frank Lampard looks set to retain his place in the starting line-up after netting a brace on Friday, and the veteran Chelsea midfielder knows full well that England can ill-afford to underestimate their next opponents despite the comfortable win in Chisinau.

“These World Cup qualifiers are big games, there is a lot of pressure and you need to pick up points especially at home,” the 34-year-old told the Football Association. “It’s a potentially tricky game. They will come with a desire to beat us. We need to be on the ball to make sure we get the right result.

“To get a good start in these qualifiers is very important because the Ukraine have the ability to be right up there in the mix.”

Arguably England’s standout performers last week were two of the youngest players in the squad. Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley, who shone in a more advanced role, and Arsenal winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain both looked unfazed by the occasion and assured in possession.

Lampard believes that their presence in the squad, combined with the experience of the senior members, has created an effective blend which holds England in good stead for the rest of the qualifying campaign.

"The good thing about those two is they are good players but they take it all in very easily and don't seem fazed at all,” the midfielder added. “They are very confident without being bullish or arrogant about it.

"I think we have a crop of players now who play with less fear than we did when we came through.”

Whether it was the calibre of their opponents or the introduction of Hodgson and his backroom staff which allowed England to play with a more relaxed demeanour last Friday is unclear at this stage.

But another confident performance against Ukraine would add weight to the claim that the FA made the right decision to appoint Hodgson back in May.

Prediction: England 2 Ukraine 0

Raheem Sterling, Adam Lallana and Jake Livermore added to England squad

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