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Preview: England vs. The Netherlands

Stuart Pearce takes charge of England for the first time as they welcome the Netherlands to Wembley on Wednesday.

England begin life after Fabio Capello with a visit from World Cup 2010 finalists the Netherlands on Wednesday evening.

Interim boss Stuart Pearce has lost a number of players from his original squad listing, with Manchester United duo Wayne Rooney and Tom Cleverley unavailable; along with Aston Villa striker Darren Bent and Tottenham Hotspur defender Kyle Walker, who have all been stricken with injury.

Liverpool's Glen Johnson has also withdrawn, meaning that Manchester City full-back Micah Richards will fight it out with United's Chris Smalling for the right-back slot.

Danny Welbeck should start as the central striker, while City midfielder James Milner could start in midfield with Gareth Barry struggling with a back concern.

The Netherlands, meanwhile, are without Ajax defender Gregory van der Wiel, meaning that former Chelsea defender Jeffrey Bruma could start in defence.

Tottenham's Rafael van der Vaart withdrew from the squad this week, while Bayern Munich's Arjen Robben is also struggling with fitness.

The Dutch enter the match with two strikers very much in form - Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has struck 33 goals for Schalke 04 this season, while Arsenal's Robin Van Persie has 29 strikes to his name.

England's overall record reads won five, drawn nine and lost four of their encounters with the Netherlands.

Possible lineups:

England: Hart; Richards, Jones, Cahill, Cole; Gerrard, Parker, Milner; Walcott, Welbeck, Young

Holland: Stekelenburg; Bruma, Heitinga, Mathijsen, Emanuelson, Van Bommel, Strootman, Sneijder, Kuyt, Van Persie, Huntelaar

Sports Mole says: 1-1

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