The changes made to the international calendar arising from the new Nations League competition means that 2019 runs to a tight schedule for Gareth Southgate and his England team as they aim to lift silverware in Portugal in the summer and also qualify for Euro 2020.
With qualification for major tournaments previously taking place over a longer cycle there have always been spaces in the calendar for friendly matches and a varying degree of interest from the public depending on who provides the opposition.
But all of the matches in England’s Euro 2020 qualifying group will take place between March and November 2019 with double-headers for the Three Lions in each of the international windows except for when they take part in the Nations League finale (qualification for which means they are in a five rather than six-team Euro 2020 group).
On the back of the hugely-competitive Nations League group matches with Spain and Croatia it means that every match this year will have something riding on it unless England get the job done early in qualifying for the Euro finals and that is no doubt a situation Southgate will relish.
England have been drawn in a group with international newcomers Kosovo in the qualifiers and are set for their first ever fixtures against the Balkan nation who have impressed in recent Nations League matches.
The Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Montenegro are the other teams in the group.