Germany captain Philipp Lahm has admitted that he would rather face England ahead of Italy during Thursday night's Euro 2012 semi-final.

The German's two potential opponents meet in Kiev later today, with many bookmakers making the Three Lions slight favourites to emerge victorious.

Despite admitting that both teams have improved since the 2010 World Cup, full-back Lahm believes that England would be a more favourable opponent for his side.

"I would prefer England. England are much better than in 2010 and so are Italy. All teams that make the semi-finals are title contenders," he told Sportbild.

"We know both teams, especially from 2006 and 2010. Both teams are strong opponents, but for sure they are not happy to play against us."

Lahm was among the goals as Germany beat Greece in the quarter-finals on Saturday night.