England vs. Slovakia: World Cup 2018 Qualifying Live Stream, Preview

England can take a massive step forward in their attempt to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup on Monday when they host Slovakia at Wembley Stadium.

Gareth Southgate's side overcame Malta 4-0 on Friday to preserve their spot at the top of Group F. However, Monday's opponents have been keeping the pressure firmly on and will head to Wembley knowing a win will see them usurp the Three Lions at the top of the group.

With just three matches remaining in qualifying, a win here would all but seal England's place at next summer's showpiece. Read on for the key viewing details ahead of the match and a look ahead to what's set to be an intriguing encounter.

Date: Monday, September 4

Time: 7:45 p.m. (BST), 2:45 p.m. (ET)

TV Info: ITV 1 (UK), Fox Sports 1 (U.S.)

Live Stream: ITV Hub (UK), Fox Sports Go (U.S.)

Preview

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Though England emerged with a 4-0 win from their clash against Malta, even the most ardent backer of the Three Lions would admit the four-goal margin flattered Southgate's side.

For long spells of the contest, England were poor against the outfit ranked 190th in the world. There was no pop in their passing, ingenuity in their movement or signs of relationships being formed out on the field.

As the Daily Mail's Sami Mokbel noted, those who made the trip to Malta to back England were not particularly pleased:

The Daily Mirror's John Cross relayed further frustrations on behalf of the travelling support:

"I understand the reaction, but we have to stay focused as a group," Southgate said of the angry fans, per Cross. "Monday's game will be completely different. I've played in nights like this and, if you don't get a couple of early goals, the atmosphere can turn. But that's part of wearing the shirt. You have to deal with that."

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Monday's game should offer a different type of challenge, especially against a team with ambitions to win. That should at least bring about a more exciting encounter.

Per Oliver Kay of The Times, the match against Malta was particularly dull, as England bossed the ball without showing much penetration:

That was until Harry Kane opened the scoring, at least. The Tottenham Hotspur man tucked home after some neat work from club team-mate Dele Alli and went on to put the gloss on the performance with his second late in the game.

Netting would have been a relief for Kane, as much has been made of his slow start to the season. The man himself noted after the match that he was glad to get August out of the way:

Slovakia, meanwhile, gave themselves hope of qualifying as group winners with a determined 1-0 win against Slovenia on Friday.

A late own goal from Slovenia's Miha Mevlja gave them a key victory in their pursuit of qualification. Crucially, not only does the win keep them in touch with England at the top, but it also means Jan Kozak's side aren't looking nervously over their shoulder at the progress being made by Scotland.

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It will be interesting to see how they approach this one. A win would break the group wide open and give Slovakia a fantastic opportunity to qualify outright. But at Wembley against England, there will surely be some conservatism in their play.

When these two sides met in the reverse fixture, England scraped a 1-0 win. Expect another scrappy encounter here, one from which England will again emerge as the narrow winners.

Prediction: England 1-0 Slovakia