England recently learned about their opponents in the Euro 2016

England recently learned about their opponents in the Euro 2016 group stages after being paired up alongside the likes of Wales, Slovakia, and Russia. The game between Wales and England will be the most anticipated encounter. Manager Roy Hodgson revealed that he is satisfied with the outcome of the draw. He expects an intense competition with Wales, who are one of the arch rivals. Wales have done extremely well in the last 12 months under the regime of Chris Coleman. Qualifying for such a major competition was itself seen as a huge achievement, but Coleman says that there’s more to come from the team.

Russia have been true turmoil in recent times, but they are expected to be competitive as well. The same can also be said about Slovakia. The major advantage for Hodgson in terms of the games against Wales is that most of the opposition players currently ply their trade in England and in the Premier League. This gives him a great opportunity to study their strengths and weaknesses. Just like England, Wales were also one of the top teams in the group stages. Hodgson is fighting for his future despite reports that England FA are considering offering him a new contract to the former Liverpool manager.

“As far as I’m concerned it has been a very satisfactory day.We are very pleased Chris Coleman and Wales have done so well, it has been exciting following their progress. There were a few teams in that pot that we could have got that would have been a tough one, so why not have a tough one close to home? All of their players play in England, but what we know most of all is their team is very well organised, they play very well together, have a fantastic team spirit and a very strong spine,” said Hodgson.