Thomas Tuchel insisted the competition is on for England’s World Cup squad, with the Three Lions boss insisting he is brave enough to leave out big names.
England edged closer to a place at next year’s tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico after maintaining their 100% start to qualifying during September.
Tuchel watched on as his side laboured to a 2-0 win over Andorra before putting in the best performance of the German’s short tenure with a 5-0 rout of Serbia away from home.
Indeed, Tuchel became just the fourth England manager to win his first five competitive games at the helm, with his team sitting seven points clear at the summit of Group K.
England’s win was made even more impressive against Serbia because of the absence of some big names, with Jude Bellingham, Cole Palmer and Bukayo Saka all out injured.
That handed the opportunity for Arsenal’s Noni Madueke, Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers and Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson to impress, and the trio certainly did that.
Across the two games against Andorra and Serbia, Anderson ranked first among England players for successful passes (182), passes in the final third (66), forward passes (48), possession won (23), duels won (14), aerial duels won (seven) and tackles (five).
Asked if England’s less experienced players had staked their claim for the shirt, Tuchel said: “Yes, for sure. The competition is on. If you’re in camp, be on your best behaviour.
“If you’re in camp, be on your best shape, be in your best form and you make the best of it. It’s a privilege to be in camp. And then fight for your place.
“If you come from the bench, be the best version from the bench. If you can help everyone to be better and to grow and this is what we did.
“They did excellent. Now they go back to their clubs. Next nomination we need to see what’s coming.”
1 – Across England’s last two games, Elliot Anderson ranks first for:
Successful Passes (182)
Passes in the Final Third (66)
Forward Passes (48)
Possession Won (23)
Duels Won (14)
Aerial Duels Won (7)
Tackles (5)Talent. pic.twitter.com/nm4vgfKqXr
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 9, 2025
John Stones and Adam Wharton also missed England’s recent camp through injury, but Tuchel had still opted to make some notable omissions from his squad selection.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Phil Foden, Kyle Walker, Harry Maguire and Jack Grealish were all left out, despite the latter making a blistering start to life on loan at Everton.
“I am always brave, you know that,” Tuchel said when asked of his approach. “But we don’t talk now about hypothetical names that can be maybe left out.
“Let’s see who’s fit and who is not and who is available.
“Like I said, I think we took some brave decisions already. We nominated a squad of only 21 to keep the competition going and the players know that.”
England are next in action in October, with a friendly against Wales followed by another qualifier against Latvia in Riga on October 14.