Ashes revenge or a famous Socceroos win? – England v Australia talking points
England beat Australia in their last meeting (Owen Humphreys/PA)
England host Australia in a sold-out friendly at Wembley on Friday evening.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at five of the main talking points ahead of the international encounter.
Alex Carey’s run-out of Jonny Bairstow made headlines during this summer’s Ashes (Mike Egerton/PA)
There is a long sporting rivalry between these countries and revenge would be sweet after an epic Ashes summer ended with the urn returning Down Under. Jonny Bairstow’s controversial stumping by Alex Carey particularly stuck in the craw during a dramatic 2-2 series draw that saw emotions run high. England have the chance to exact a slither of revenge under the arch on Friday, when Gareth Southgate expects the sporting rivalry to “add an extra edge” to the occasion.
Harry Kewell scored in Australia’s win over England in 2003 (Chris Young/PA)
This will be the first time these nations have met at Wembley, with the only previous two encounters on English soil played at the Stadium of Light and Upton Park. Wayne Rooney made his debut in the latter friendly in February 2003, but it was Australia that won 3-1 on the night. It is the only time England have lost in seven meetings with the Socceroos and Graham Arnold’s side, ranked 27th in the world, would love nothing more than to repeat the feat on Friday.
Gareth Southgate’s side face Italy next week (Joe Giddens/PA)
Last month’s friendly against Scotland ended a run of 16 successive competitive matches for England, covering last year’s Nations League campaign, the 2022 World Cup and Euro 2024 qualification. Southgate said before the game that over-experimenting at Hampden Park would be “ridiculous” but still managed to try a few
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