England made a steady start to the Thomas Tuchel era with routine victories against Albania and Latvia to kick off their World Cup qualifying campaign.
With five goals scored, none conceded and six points secured, Tuchel’s Three Lions are already in a strong position to top their group.
There is plenty of room for improvement, but England’s new boss will have a better understanding of his talent pool after observing them up close during his first international break.
Here are the early winners and losers from England’s first couple of games under new management:
Winners
Myles Lewis-Skelly
The first standout success story of the Tuchel era. The goal 20 minutes into his debut against Albania was clearly the highlight, but Lewis-Skelly’s assurance and protection of the ball also caught the eye: he only misplaced six passes out of 152 across both matches.
The Arsenal teenager has won Tuchel over instantly. “He is an amazing player, an amazing personality,” Tuchel told ITV after the Albania win.
“He came into camp and showed straight away that it’s normal to fall in love with him. It is well deserved.”
Left-back has been a problem position for England over the past few years with Luke Shaw and Ben Chilwell both experiencing rotten luck with injuries. The right-footed Kieran Trippier started six of England’s seven games at the Euros, with a half-fit Shaw coming in for the final.
Lewis-Skelly may well return to his natural central midfield berth as his career progresses but for now, left-back represents his best chance of getting into the England team. After this week, it’s his position to lose.
Marcus Rashford
Rashford may feel slightly disappointed that he was unable to contribute any goals or assists given how much of the ball he had in both matches, but will be heartened to be back in the frame after a long time on the fringes.
The Aston Villa loanee was a surprise inclusion in the squad given his lack of consistent game-time at club level – he has made just one Premier League start since 4 December 2024 – and an even more surprising starter in both fixtures.
Although he was critical of Rashford’s impact against Albania, Tuchel clearly sees something in him after handing him an international footballing lifeline.
The same applies to Jordan Henderson, albeit to a lesser extent after his two substitute appearances.
Reece James
Another player drafted in from the wilderness and one who made a more telling contribution with a stunning free-kick goal against Latvia, his first for his country.
Tuchel described James as a player of the “highest quality,” adding that he looks “sharp and in shape” after a few seasons ravaged by injury.
James has been sidelined for so long that it has become easy to forget that he is England’s most complete right-back. On top of opening the scoring, he made a superbly timed sliding tackle in the second half to halt a rare Latvia foray into England territory.
Hopefully, Enzo Maresca’s bizarre infatuation with playing James centrally, either as a midfielder or inverted full-back, will end soon. He is a fantastic attacking right-back when fit.
Declan Rice
Despite playing as a lone pivot in both games, Rice still contributed two assists (both for Harry Kane).
Tuchel will likely need to find a more defensive partner for Rice when sterner tests arrive, but it is clear that he remains one of the first names on the teamsheet.
Losers
Phil Foden
A permanent fixture under the previous regime, Foden may find he has to work harder to keep his place under the new one after an indifferent start.
The Manchester City forward was ineffective against Albania with Tuchel questioning his lack of impact in the game and was then named on the bench against Latvia.
As much as international rotation is standard, it felt like a demotion. Foden did at least record an assist for Eberechi Eze.
As Foden has generally found at his club, at least until Kevin De Bruyne’s gradual decline started, his favoured position is already filled.
Jude Bellingham is the No 10 that Tuchel intends to build around and given their respective output in an England shirt, Foden can have no complaints.
He has now gone 18 international games without a goal, which is a staggering statistic given his quality and some of the sub-standard opponents he has faced in that time.
Marc Guehi
Guehi had started 13 of England’s last 15 matches before Tuchel’s first game and one of those he missed was due to suspension, the Euro 2024 quarter-final win over Switzerland.
The 24-year-old was one of England’s best performers during that tournament and with John Stones and Harry Maguire both missing from Tuchel’s squad, he was the most senior centre-back selected.
It was a surprise, therefore, when he was left out of the first game. Guehi was reinstated for the second but had a shaky night. Latvia almost scored after a misunderstanding between Guehi and Jordan Pickford, while a slip in the second half resulted in Tuchel raising his hands to his head in alarm.
Ezri Konsa started both games and seems to have overtaken Guehi in the pecking order.
Morgan Gibbs-White
Brilliant as the Nottingham Forest dynamo has been this season he was omitted from Tuchel’s original squad and only drafted in after Cole Palmer pulled out injured. He was then left out of the matchday squad against Albania and an unused sub against Latvia.
In theory, Tuchel’s tactics should suit the 25-year-old perfectly. England played with split No 8s who knitted midfield with attack, made forwards runs with and without the ball, and offered support to Harry Kane.
Tuchel’s use of Curtis Jones and Morgan Rogers in those roles suggests that they are ahead of Gibbs-White in his plans.
Dominic Solanke
With Ollie Watkins ruled out through injury, Dominic Solanke looked to be second in command to Kane, the player he ultimately replaced at Tottenham.
Solanke didn’t play a single minute in either game with Kane surprisingly getting the full 90 minutes in both. A missed opportunity for the current Spurs striker.
