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Route to the World Cup final: England permutations and who they would they play next?

Can England reach the World Cup 2018 semi-final? - AP
Can England reach the World Cup 2018 semi-final? - AP

The story so far

Is it coming home? Could it really be coming home? England's 2-0 defeat of Sweden in the quarter finals has got the nation dreaming of going all the way and lifting the World Cup for the first time since 1966.

The journey began with a last-minute winner against Tunisia in the opening group match before storming to a 6-1 victory over Panama, their biggest ever win at any major tournament. However, after losing 1-0 to Belgium, England finished as group runners-up, meaning they faced Colombia in the knock-outs. 

Though usually the best-case scenario is finishing first, the unpredictable nature of the first two rounds of the group stage meant that many of the tournament's favourites have actually finished second in their group (or were knocked out altogether).

So, although England lost, they found themselves in arguably the easier half of the draw. It took some nail biting penalty drama - Jordan Pickford's heroics in goal and a cool strike from Eric Dier - to progress. But Gareth Southgate's side were through and faced Sweden in the quarter finals.

Now England are in dreamland after making it through to their first World Cup semi-final in 28 years thanks to goals from Harry Maguire and Dele Alli against stoic Sweden.

England World Cup 2018 | Latest news

Here we plot what could happen next.

Possible route to the World Cup 2018 final

Against the odds, Sweden managed to finish first in a group featuring Germany, Mexico and South Korea.

After England made it past Sweden and into the semi-finals, they were set to face either Russia or Croatia.

The tournament hosts were stubborn and well-organised in their last-16 victory over ball-hoarders Spain on penalties. But although Russia made it further at this year's World Cup than most anyone expected, it was Croatia that advanced to the semifinals with a 4-3 shootout victory Saturday following a 2-2 draw. 

If England overcome Croatia,  well, it would be England's first World Cup final since 1966, but there's a long, long way to go. 

  • Semi-final: Wednesday July 11, 7pm

  • Final: Sunday July 15, 4pm

World Cup 2018 | Fixtures, groups, squads and more

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