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All eyes will be on Thomas Tuchel as he continues to build towards England’s World Cup bid next summer
England return to World Cup qualifying action hoping to build on a strong start to life under Thomas Tuchel.
A perhaps overmatched Andorra are the opposition in game three in Group K for Tuchel’s side, with this fixture relocated to Barcelona with the Pyrenean state’s national stadium unavailable. England have been working hard with a warm-weather camp in Catalonia ahead of the game as Tuchel sets the high standards he expects of his side as they begin to build towards next summer’s major tournament.
A nation that have never scored against England are perhaps not the opponent to best test Tuchel’s team but the manager will be keen to see some of his squad back in action. Several will be off to the Club World Cup after this qualifier and the friendly against Senegal that follows, underlining the hectic schedule with which top footballers have to contend, and some rotation is likely as Tuchel begins to settle on his favoured system and side.
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Here’s what Thomas Tuchel had to say ahead of the game, which gave an indication of which way his team selection might go.
“First of all, I think it’s about being serious and being professional and being determined and showing it also in the line-up.
“It will be an offensive line-up and it will be an attacking line-up and it will give us the opportunity to perform and put the game where we want to have the game and get the result that we want to have and then we will see.
“My thoughts are not so much ‘who can we see?’ and ‘what do we try?’ It’s more about the gameplans and who trains well and who feels well and who has the connections and who showed up in a good rhythm after a long season.
“From there, we take in-game decisions that are necessary according to the flow of the game and then we take the decisions in the friendly match.”
Here’s what some fans had to say ahead of this evening’s encounter.
Andorra haven’t beaten England in any of their six meetings, losing by an aggregate score of 0-25.
Reece James, selected out of position today at left-back, had this to say in the press conference ahead of the game.
“I had a difficult two or three seasons, always being injured and coming back and breaking down again. It was tough. It takes a lot out of you when you have so many setbacks. This season, I feel like I’ve come on leaps and bounds, playing on a consistent basis and getting selected for England again.”
On the competition for full-back spots, he said, “It’s something I’m used to, playing or competing with world-class players. Of course, it’s going to be tough but we all have different capabilities and different strengths and it’s just about whichever one the manager wants to play.”
Bukayo Saka has been left out of today’s squad, after Tuchel revealed he was suffering with a knock on Friday.
“It’s nice to see that he’s back because he wanted to be back, and you straight away see when he comes in that he is comfortable to be with the squad, he knows what it takes to be a national player,” the England boss said.
“He came into camp with a little bit of discomfort from the last match against Southampton, so we took care of him and treated him individually until (Friday) basically.
“It was the first training session that he started and finished with the group. (Thursday), he started with the group but did not finish with the group, so let’s see.
On England’s next game, against Senegal on Tuesday, he said, “The decision has not been taken, but he will be available for the Senegal match, and he plays a major role in our thoughts of how to build a competitive team.”
Andorra XI: Alvarez, Llovera, Garcia, R. Fernandez, Babot, Rodrigo, San Nicolas, Cervos, Guillen, Olivera, Borra
Substitutes: Gomes, Pires, Da Cunha, Vales, Rebes, Alexandre Martinez, Vales, Lopez, De Las Heras, Rubio, Joao Da Silva, Marc Garcia
As well as experimental, Tuchel has picked an attacking side, as you’d expect with such a wealth of attacking talent in the squad and England expected to have most possession today.
There are five changes from England’s last match, a 3-0 win over Latvia in March.
Dan Burn, Jordan Henderson, Curtis Jones, Noni Madueke and Cole Palmer come into the starting XI, with Marc Guehi (out with an eye injury), Myles Lewis-Skelly (benched), Declan Rice (benched), Jarrod Bowen and Marcus Rashford dropping out.
Something of an experimental line-up by Tuchel here. Not a single right-back in this squad is playing at right-back, with Reece James instead starting at left-back and Curtis Jones on the opposite side.
Jordan Henderson, who Tuchel has repeatedly backed as a leader, is rewarded with a starting spot in midfield, his first start since November 2023 against Malta. Declan Rice is benched – presumably with one eye on the Senegal game next week.
England XI: Jordan Pickford, Reece James, Ezri Konsa, Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Dan Burn, Curtis Jones, Morgan Rogers, Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer
Substitutes: Kyle Walker, Declan Rice, Levi Colwill, Morgan Gibbs-White, Anthony Gordon, Dean Henderson, Ivan Toney, Eberechi Eze, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Myles Lewis-Skelly, James Trafford, Trevoh Chalobah
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