England vs Croatia LIVE: Nation roars on Harry Kane's Three Lions in World Cup semi-final

Fans across the country are roaring on the Three Lions as they battle their way through their first semi-final in 28 years with baited breath.

Gareth Southgate’s boys have been backed to go all the way, after a tense 2-0 win over Sweden in their quarter final clash.

The clash kicked off at 7pm BST at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, with fans nestling in front of big screens showing the big match.

Fans and celebrities alike have been sending the England squad messages of support as the team gears up for its first semi-final since 1990.

If the Three Lions beat rivals Croatia this evening, Harry Kane and company will find themselves facing France in the World Cup final.

Earlier today Gareth Southgate spoke of the expectations placed on the shoulders of his players by the failures of past England teams.

He said: “Most of them weren’t born when a lot of the stories we’re talking about happened, so why as a coach would I try and put that at their door?

“They’ve seen we’ve got good lads who are incredibly proud to play, and are playing in a slightly different style to the one we’ve seen for a few years – playing with confidence on a big stage. So, they should – we’ve got trust in them doing that.”

The match is live now on ITV1. FOLLOW OUR LIVE BLOG BELOW

19.30 – Tensions build up on pitch as England defend 1-0 lead

Sterlin’s fast pace is causing huge problems for the Croatian defence.

Lovren shoved Kane, hard, in the solar plexus. 

As Croatia narrowly missed a strike on goal, and had repeated failed attempts , england struck back just as hard with attacking vigour and pace.

19.05 – GOAL!

England are off to a flying start with an opening free kick from Kieran Trippier.

He ws awarded the free kick and belted a shot in the bakc of the net in th 5th minute of the game.

The Three Lions are charging out of the blocks already. 

7pm – KICK OFF!

The teams have been warming up all afternoon. 

The managers have shaken hands and exchanged pleasantries.

England sits with baited breath as the Three Lion’s dream torunament continues. 

COME ON ENGLAND!

6.35pm – the open road to victory

Just as we were told earlier, non football fans can enjoy a full 90-minutes of stress free driving this evening.

One of the busiest roads in the country is almost clear – and it feels pretty eerie.

The A11 near Newmarket, Suffolk was near to being deserted on Wednesday evening just before kick off as people stayed indoors to watch England play in the World Cup semi final.

Meanwhile, a brand of supermarket chain Iceland in Clapham London, changed its signage to read ‘ENGland”.

6.30pm – England fans begin to show their nerves

Our team for the semi-Final includes our best players, such as Harry Kane, Rahim Sterlin and Henderson – but England fans are still remaining superstituous about the clash.One

England fan wrote: “Right time to be honest. Who is still doing strange things today because they are superstitious and think that it will help England win? I’m wearing the same t-shirt I’ve worn for all the games.”

Another, Chloem Olivia, said: “One of the old delivery drivers who comes into my work has wore a full England kit for good luck every day since the world cup started and it’s soooo cute.”

6.10pm- Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, offers humourous message to England

The most senior member of the Church of England, Archbishop Justin Welby, offered his suppot as pre-match tensions built.

And never one to shy away from a good joke, Mr Welby cheekily tweeted:”As an Archbishop I’m praying for a nice balanced #EnglandvCroatia match in which the best side wins… 

“… come on England! It’s coming home!! #ENGCRO #ItsComingHome #WorldCup”

6.00pm – fans gather in Hyde Park London as football frenzy grips capital 

Around 30,000 Football fans have begun convergeing on Hyde Park to watch the game on big screens. 

Lucky ticket-holders for the free screening began arriving early on Wednesday afternoon to stake out their spots ahead of the big game.

Some, including window cleaner Fred Sweeney, 48, left work early to begin the party.

He said: “We don’t need to be nervous, it’s coming home,” he said. “We’re going to win it. We’re going to win the World Cup.”

5.50pm  – Full starting Xis revealed

The full squad for both sides has been nnounced ahead of the game.

England will start wih Pickford, Walker, Stones, Maguire, Trippier, Young, Lingard, Henderson, Dele, Kane and Sterling.

Meanwhile, Croatia will kick the game off with Subasic, Vrsaljko, Strinic, Lovren, Vida, Rakitic, Modric, Brozovic, Perisic, Mandzukic and Rebic.

Carpenter Ross Butler, 26, added: “(Raheem) Sterling’s going to score for the first time tonight.”

5.45pm – Rush hour takes a new meaning in the UK 

For most people, the first obstacle this evening will be making it to a television screen in time for the game after rushing through their hoem time commutes. 

Already, the streets of the capital are lining with eager footie fans hellbent on one thing – making it for the start of the Three Lion’s historic clash.

As the BBC reports, commuters heading home on the train say some services are “packed”.

Southern and Great Northern warned services may be extremely busy.

AA president Edmund King predicted that roads would be “quieter than on Christmas Day” during the match.

He said: “We are likely to see an earlier-than-normal rush-hour from work, as, despite a 7pm kick-off, many venues screening the match get filled up hours before the game.

“Any drivers not interested in football will have the roads to themselves for at least 90 minutes from 7pm.”

Virgin Trains has lifted ticket restrictions on its West Coast Mainline trains leaving London Euston station so people with off-peak or advance tickets can catch any train.

“It’s not so much a rush hour as a ‘coming home hour’,” said Simon Williams of the RAC, who said the heaviest traffic will be between 16:00 and 18:00.

5.20pm – British supporters gather in their thousands in the Russian capital

Police estimated as many as 10,000 fans are ready to cheer England on in the Russian capital.

Among them were father and son Joe and Andrew Settle from Bolton, who decided they could not miss the chance to see the national side in a World Cup semi-final.

For Joe, 62, it will be his first live match. He said:”I’m hoping their (Croatia’s) luck has run out. Two penalty shootouts and they weren’t that good, they just scraped through.

“I think it’s our year this time.

“There’s no out and out stars and everybody just looks at them as young lads, making their way out, they’ve not got above their station. And they’re just thinking, ‘we’ll get behind these lads’.

“They’re not bothered about the money, they look like they are enjoying it, they want to do it and they’re proud to do it for their country.”

Scott Ratcliffe and his 10-year-old son Eliott, who has broken up from school, were in the queue to pick up their Fan IDs, having arrived in Moscow on Tuesday.

The 46-year-old, from Four Oaks in Birmingham, said: “Absolutely flying – can’t explain how good it feels, especially after Italia 90.

“I couldn’t get there, tried three times so I’ve waited 28 years to get here.

“I think it’s going to be very tight, Croatia are not going to be a pushover, by any means.

“They’ve got a good side, they’ve improved over the years, but I look at  at the moment and think we’ve got a fantastic side.”

5.10 – British Army offers support to Gareth’s Three Lions squad

It’s two hours to go until England’s young football squad face the touhest match of their lives – but pcitures have shown the England Swaud training with the Royal Marines in order to build up some steely resilience. 

Back at home in London, The British Army perfromed a rendition of Three Lions in the grounds of Buckingham Palace.

Taking to twitter, the Forces said: “It’s coming home. Supporting the England team and Gareth Southgate ahead of tonight’s World Cup semi-final showdown with Croatia.”

5.00pm  – England squad’s gruelling training scheulde with…a rubber chicken

While the rest of us are shaking with nerves, it seems Harry Kane and the England squad are said to be more relaxed and confident than ever. 

In fact, on Tuesday, the squad were seen training in Russia with a rubber chicken. Cheeky lads!

4.50pm – Prince William offers his personal support to the Three Lions

The Duke of Cambridge, who is president of the Football Association (FA), backed the England squad with a special rallying cry.

The Duke, who is a an avid football fan and Aston Villa supporter – offered Gareth’s men the very best as they look to make history in Russia tonight and said the squad have ‘fired up a generation”.

William said: “A new generation is enjoying the magic of this World Cup run. The whole country is right behind you tonight. Come on England – it’s coming home!”

And when asked by reporters if football was coming home, Prince Harry quipped: “most definetely.”

4.20pm – All aboard for England!

It’s not just the general public back at home getting behind Southgate’s men.

The crew of the British minesweeper HMS Ledbury is on stand-by for England’s big FIFA World Cup semi-final showdown against Croatia in Moscow tonight.

The oldest ship in the British Naval fleet, which is patrolling The Gulf protecting key shipping lanes and the flow of international trade has a crew of 47 including sailors, mine warfare experts, clearance divers with bomb disposal expertise as well as engineers. 

Commanding Officer Lieutenant Commander Charles Collins said: “We may be a long way from home but we can feel the excitement on board just as much as the England fans in the pubs and the parks.”

4.00pm update – England v Croatia, tale of the tape

England have faced Croatia in seven matches before and won four times. They lost once and drew twice in previous fixtures against Croatia.

But England are tipped to have a good chance on toppling their long-time rivals.

According to bookmakers Ladbrokes, England’s match against Croatia is set to smash viewing figure records in the UK.

When England won the World Cup in 1966, a record 32.3 million people tuned in, but Ladbrokes have slashed odds to 5/1 that figure will be beaten tonight.

3.50pm update: Des Lynam predicts KNIGHTHOOD for Southgate

Des Lynam, a former BBC football commentator, said of Gareth Southgate’s incredible run in the tournament so far: “After the tournament Gareth Southgate should be seconded to the Government to finalise Brexit – someone has to do it – and get the trains to run on time before making his way to the Palace to be dubbed appropriately a knight of the realm.

England fans across the country are reaching frenzy point, eagerly awaiting kick off at 7pm.

3.45pm update: Dog charity off the leash with excitement

One dog charity has been so impressed with the England squad, it named a litter of 18 puppies after the star football players.

The Dogs Trust in Shrewsbury received the gorgeous puppies from unwanted litters last week and, in the spirit of the World Cup, have given them some rather fitting names – including Harry Canine, Delle Alsatian and Jesse Linguard-Dog.