England's Wayne Rooney (L) and Italy's Giorgio Chiellini fight for the ball during their 2014 World Cup Group D soccer match at the Amazonia arena in Manaus June 14, 2014.
England's Wayne Rooney (L) and Italy's Giorgio Chiellini fight for the ball during their 2014 World Cup Group D soccer match at the Amazonia arena in Manaus June 14, 2014. REUTERS/

Uruguay and England have faced 10 times in past international competitions and no team has been able to get a clear advantage in their head-to-head match-up.

They meet again in a crucial game on Thursday at 4:00 pm local time (Friday 5:00 am in Australia) at the Arena Corinthians Sao Paulo in Brazil in a Group D action of the 2014 World Cup.

La Celeste has the slight edge over the Three Lions with 4 wins and 3 draws against 3 losses although the latter has been more successful in WC play with a win and a draw against the former.

Both squads are coming off tough losses in their opening games; Uruguay was upset by Costa Rica, 3-1 and England fell to Italy, 2-1. The loser in this match-up will most likely get the early boot from the tournament.

For Uruguay, the health of star striker Luis Suarez, who underwent a knee surgery before the WC began and missed the game versus Costa Rica, will decide how they fare in this game.

"He has recovered very well. His knee seems to have adapted with the training and the work he's been doing. He's been training and playing with his teammates during this last week," said Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez to FIFA.COM.

While Uruguay’s attack will get a boost with a supposedly healthy Suarez, their defense will falter after Diego Lugano has been ruled out against England because of a knee injury and will miss Maxi Pereira who got a red card in the opener.

Meanwhile, England coach Roy Hodgson deflected controversy between him and Wayne Rooney with a vote of confidence before the crucial match on Thursday

"He came into this tournament wanting to do very well and I think he will do very well in the tournament," said Hodgson in the tournament’s official site.

"Wayne has got broad shoulders. He's getting a lot of support from everyone around him. We've got a very clear perspective as to what Wayne is and what Wayne can do. We're hoping for big things from him."

Along with Rooney, England is also expecting contributions from Daniel Sturridge, Raheem Sterling and Steven Gerrard.

Before the game on Thursday, the betting odds tilt in favour of England with a 1.45 line against Uruguay’s 2.63 to win the match. In the three-way betting, England is at 2.10, Uruguay at 3.60 and a draw at 3.50.

Probable Starting 11:

England (4-2-3-1): Hart; Johnson, Jagielka, Cahill, Baines; Gerrard, Wilshere; Welbeck, Rooney, Sterling; Sturridge.

Uruguay (4-2-3-1): Muslera; Caceres, Lugano, Godin, Pereira; Gargano, Arevalo; Rodriguez, Forlan, Suárez; Cavani.

Uruguay vs. England Live Streaming Information: SBS (Australia) ESPN (United States) or BBC (United Kingdom)

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