Roy Hodgson's men lead Group E by six points after five matches, having rebounded from World Cup disappointment with a new-look team and a series of convincing performances.
Wayne Rooney and Danny Welbeck found the net as Slovenia were overcome 3-1 at Wembley in November, but only after the visitors had caused a scare by forcing a Jordan Henderson own goal.
And Katanec - who scored against England for Yugoslavia in a Euro 1988 qualifier in Belgrade - is adamant his side will need no motivation to face such illustrious opponents again.
"Even when I was a player, these games were the easiest," he tells Goal. "No one can blame you for losing against England. We can't compare ourselves in any way. We can't go wrong."
| 'KANE IN ENGLAND'S BEST XI? NO CHANCE!' |
One man absent from the England party is Harry Kane, scorer of 29 goals in all competitions for Tottenham last season but otherwise engaged with the European Under-21 Championships this summer.
The Spurs star was the story of the Premier League season but Katanec insists that with Rooney and Welbeck as well as new boys Charlie Austin and Jamie Vardy at their disposal, England will not miss him.
"Am I relieved because he [Kane] is not here? He wouldn't have played if England came here at full strength, no chance!" he adds.
"Kane scored a lot of goals [last season], which is important for a forward, especially at this level."
| 'I'D LOVE TO SEE THEM F*** AROUND!' |
England arrive in Ljubljana aiming to finish a season unbeaten for the first time in 24 years, and Katanec does not expect to find them at anything less than full strength.
"I'm sure that England won't f**k around and come here with a B-team or a Under-21 team," he insists.
"I think they'll come at full strength, because I respect football and I think that they respect it too. But I would love to see them come here and f**k around.
"Yes! I would like to see them take a light approach, but we certainly won't. We know what to expect - England will come highly motivated and with a team that will be the strongest possible."
| 'WALCOTT DOESN'T EVEN GET IN THE TEAM!' |
Katanec was at the helm of Macedonia when the Balkan minnows held England to a goalless draw at Old Trafford in October 2006 - a result that helped cost his opponents qualification for Euro 2008 and Steve McClaren his job.
"I would immediately sign up to play against that England again," he declares. "Their forward back then was [Peter] Crouch! Now they have forwards of which you can't really say who's the fastest.
"[Theo] Walcott doesn't even get in the team. These young kids, from [Danny] Welbeck to [Raheem] Sterling... fortunately Daniel Sturridge is out… they have so much pace.
"Before you knew what to expect. England were so easy to read. This is a team with completely different qualities, qualities which modern football demands. First and foremost it demands speed and they have that."
| STERLING ISN'T MESSI... |
Sterling in particular has emerged as one of the key figures of Hodgson's new England, the speed of his rise for club and country matched only by the intense controversy his contract stand-off with Liverpool has generated.
Katanec believes the controversial 20-year-old is a special talent but is adamant he will not be granted special attention by the Slovenia defenders on Sunday.
"He's a great player but I'm not sure he knows what he wants to do all the time," he concludes. "Defenders feel different towards him than, let's say Messi. He doesn't get the ball in an authoritative way.
"He's a great player, don't get me wrong, strong physically on the ball, but he's not Messi's rank. It's funny even to try and make the comparison."
| 'WELBECK'S A KILLER!' |
But Welbeck is a different matter. The Arsenal striker scored twice in six second-half minutes against Slovenia at Wembley in November, but is unlikely to feature due to injury, which will no doubt leave Katanec breathing a sigh of relief.
"I know how certain top players are very important to them," Katanec insists. "Welbeck means so much to this team. He's a killer, because he scores.
"He scored two against us, but he's scored loads more. So without him they have their problem. They can't be that confident coming here."
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