After their dominant win over Iran, England can make it two wins from two on Friday night when they face the United States in the 2022 World Cup and all but secure passage into the knockout stage.
A brace from Bukayo Saka plus goals from Jude Bellingham, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford and Jack Grealish saw England beat Iran 6-2 in their 2022 FIFA World Cup opener earlier this week. Next up is a clash against the USA, with a win for Gareth Southgate's potentially booking them a spot in the World Cup Round of 16 with a game spare.
USA drew 1-1 with Wales in the other game of Group B, meaning England sit in the top spot after one match. The Three Lions have also been given a boost ahead of Friday's clash, with Harry Kane declared fit following a slight scare in the win over Iran.
READ MORE: England vs USA prediction by supercomputer for World Cup Group B showdown
So, how could England perform against the United States on Friday night? We simulated the game to find out.
We simulated England vs USA to get a score prediction
To run this simulation, we used FIFA 23 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions. We didn't select a team to control, with the World Class AI playing against each other to get a score prediction.
We predict that England could line up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up unchanged from the win over Iran: Pickford: Trippier, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Bellingham, Rice, Mount; Saka, Kane, Sterling.
We predict that USA could set up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: Turner; Dest, Zimmerman, Ream, Robinson; McKennie, Adams, Musah; Weah, Sargent, Pulisic.
England looked in control during the opening stages of the game, but the United States did threaten on a couple of occasions, with Timothy Weah and Weston McKennie both forcing good saves out of Jordan Pickford early on. The game looked set to go into the break at 0-0, but England took the lead in the first minute of added time in the first half through John Stones.
A short corner from Kieran Trippier found Bukayo Saka just outside the box on the right, and the Arsenal winger clipped an inviting cross towards Stones at the front post. As he charged towards the ball, Stones flicked his header across goal, flying past Matt Turner and into the far corner of the net.
As USA pushed high up the pitch in the second half, the Three Lions found most of their success by hitting the Stars and Stripes on the counter-attack. And, with 70 minutes on the clock, England doubled their lead with a fantastic goal from Mason Mount.
As Kane dropped to the halfway line to receive the ball, Mount burst into the space left vacant in-behind the USA backline and was picked out by Jude Bellingham to go through on goal. The midfielder carried the ball around 20 yards towards goal before firing past the 'keeper to make it 2-0.
A period of possession for USA saw Pickford once again called into action, and the 'keeper made some remarkable saves to keep England's lead intact. The away side kept pushing for a goal to find a way back into the contest, but the game was put to bed in the 84th minute as Mount grabbed his second.
Tim Ream was caught sleeping as he pushed out of defence with the ball, and Bellingham's aggressive challenge on the defender saw the ball fall into the path of Mount just inside the box. After one touch out of his feet, the Chelsea man fired a powerful strike into the net to make it 3-0 to England.
USA made it 3-1 in the 88th minute when a cleared corner was volleyed back towards goal by Tyler Adams, and a wicked deflection off Declan Rice wrong-footed Pickford to wipe out the Three Lions' clean sheet. Nothing more came after the late goal as England claimed the victory.
FIFA 23 predicted score: England 3-1 USA
Here are the full-time match stats.
FIFA 23 predicts that England could produce another fine attacking display to overcome the United States on Friday night. A brace from Mount following Stones' opener secured the win, with Pickford also delivering a fantastic performance to help the Three Lions pick up the three points.
FIFA 23 is developed by EA Vancouver and EA Romania and is now available worldwide on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Stadia, PS4, and Xbox One.
READ MORE:
Chelsea starlet sends Graham Potter World Cup message with sensational goal
England vs USA prediction by supercomputer for World Cup Group B showdown
Chelsea news: Harry Kane transfer mission planned as Gareth Southgate sent England instruction
Bukayo Saka and Jack Grealish troll each other on Instagram amid England's World Cup win vs Iran
Erling Haaland 'blocks' Jude Bellingham transfer as Arsenal offers for England star are revealed
