Wayne Rooney, left, and John Terry jog at practice on Tuesday near Rustenberg. (Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images)

Day 8, Match 3

England vs. Algeria, Group C

Date and Location

June 18, Green Point Stadium, Cape Town

Broadcast details

Live on CBC and CBCSports.ca (2 p.m. ET). Consult CBC's full broadcast schedule.

What's at stake

Slovenia is the surprise leader in Group C, sitting in first place with three points after its 1-0 win over Algeria. England is tied for second, with the U.S. on one point after battling to a 1-1 draw. Algeria is in last place.

Although both teams technically could still be mathematically alive if either one fails to collect three points, this really is a must-win game for both countries. England needs the victory to keep pace with Slovenia, while Algeria needs points to get back into the race.

A loss for either side would leave them teetering on the brink of elimination. A win would revitalize their hopes of moving on to the next round.

Suspension watch

Captain Steven Gerrard, fellow midfielder James Milner and defender Jamie Carragher earned yellow cards in England’s previous match. If any one of them receives another against Algeria, they will be suspended for their country’s final game of the group stage.

Striker Abdelkader Ghezzal was sent off after picking up two yellow cards against Slovenia, which means he is ruled out for this game. If midfielder Hassan Yebda is cautioned against England, he will be suspended for Algeria’s last game of the group stage.

Player to watch for England

Wayne Rooney — The Manchester United forward was pretty quiet in England’s last match, as he was comfortably contained by the Americans. But Rooney is one of the most dangerous players in the game, and when his country needs goals, he usually delivers.

Player to watch for Algeria

Raifik Saifi — With Ghezzal suspended and Rafik Djebbour coming off a poor outing against Slovenia, look for coach Rabah Saadane to change things up and throw Saifi, who scored three goals in the qualifiers, into the starting lineup to lead the charge up front.

Key matchup

Antar Yahia vs. Wayne Rooney— Tall and strong, Yahi is a dominating presence in the middle of Algeria's defence and he is also willing to throw his weight around. If he can effectively use his strength against Rooney, he might be able to frustrate the Englishman.

The English perspective

"[Fabio Capello] knows we can do better. He told us he saw things in the first game that were encouraging and he has taken them and told us we should still believe in ourselves and what we are doing." — Forward Peter Crouch

The Algerian perspective

"We showed against Slovenia that we can do something. We will see against England. We need to be focused and we need to be confident. Every game now is a fight and we need points against England so that we can get points in this group." — Midfielder Adlene Guedioura

All time head-to-head

This match marks the first time the Three Lions will battle the Desert Foxes in any kind of international match.