England 1-2 for winning start

England are a best-priced 1-2 with Totesport and Skybet to make a winning start under Fabio Capello when they entertain Switzerland at Wembley on Wednesday evening.

Winning friendlies has not been England’s forte under previous regimes, but there seems little prospect of any slacking this time with Capello, a noted disciplinarian, demanding high standards from the off.

There is an argument that England have still to find their feet at the new Wembley, and may indeed still be a little intimidated by it. In six matches under Steve McClaren the home side won just three — against Israel, Russia and Estonia — with defeats to Germany and Croatia suggesting the new stadium is not yet the fortress that home fans crave.

That said, Switzerland should not be strong enough to pose England too many problems, especially as the visitors must field a side weakened by the absence of first choice players Alex Frei, Ludovic Magnin, Johan Djourou and Marco Streller.

For those who can foresee an upset, Switzerland are a stand-out 17-2 with Bet365, with the draw a general 11-4.

Also worth noting is totesport’s offer of 4-6 about England to keep a clean sheet.