Thomas Tuchel’s brief time as England manager so far has been somewhat underwhelming. England fans might have been spoiled by the relative success they enjoyed while Gareth Southgate was at the helm, but only managing a 1-0 victory over minnows Andorra in a World Cup qualifying match in June was well below par.
Tuchel’s Three Lions followed that disappointing display with a home defeat to Senegal in a friendly at the City Ground. It might have been the first defeat under Tuchel, and the first time his England side had even conceded goals, but with the World Cup fast approaching, it left a bitter taste over the summer.
Now Tuchel and his England side have a chance to rediscover their form as the Three Lions face back-to-back World Cup qualifiers, at home against Andorra on Saturday, 6th September, and then a potentially tricky trip to Serbia three days later. The first task is for Tuchel’s men to maintain their 100% record in the qualifying group, after three wins from three. But almost as importantly, they must put in a couple of performances that give England fans hope about the post-Southgate era. But can the German former Chelsea, PSG and Bayern Munich boss mastermind such performances?
Tuchel’s England Squad for September Qualifiers
Time to work 👊#ThreeLions | @Hilton pic.twitter.com/xZ4n1mGFwc
— England (@England) September 2, 2025
Before we look at England’s prospects for creating a new, effective and entertaining identity under Tuchel, let’s examine the squad of players he’s picked for the upcoming games.
- Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), James Trafford (Man City), Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace).
- Defenders: Reece James (Chelsea), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), John Stones (Man City), Dan Burn (Newcastle), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Tino Livramento (Newcastle), Djed Spence (Tottenham), Jarell Quansah** (Bayer Leverkusen).
- Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Jordan Henderson (Brentford), Adam Wharton* (Crystal Palace), Ruben Loftus-Cheek** (AC Milan), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Declan Rice (Arsenal).
- Forwards: Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle), Noni Madueke (Arsenal), Marcus Rashford (Barcelona, on loan from Man Utd), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa).
* Adam Wharton subsequently dropped out due to injury.
** Jarell Quansah and Ruben Loftus-Cheek were late additions to the squad.
Main Talking Points of Tuchel’s Squad
One of the most obvious omissions from the latest England squad is Trent Alexander-Arnold, who moved from Liverpool to Real Madrid at the end of last season. Jack Grealish, who has been putting in some excellent displays since joining Everton on loan, also doesn’t make the cut on this occasion, though if he keeps playing like he has been, surely he will be brought back into the fold before long.
In terms of inclusions, Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson and Tottenham’s Djed Spence earn their first call-ups. Tuchel has also recalled John Stones, Marcus Rashford (who’s now playing for Barcelona on loan), Adam Wharton and Jarrod Bowen. The German has also included the 35-year-old Jordan Henderson, but can find no room at the inn for Kyle Walker (also 35), Phil Foden or Ivan Toney. The likes of Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka and Cole Palmer are all absent due to injuries.
How Can Tuchel Inspire a Big Performance?
As with most England squads, there is a decent mix of new and established internationals, and no shortage of talent. But finding a formation, starting line-up and philosophy that allows the best players to flourish for England can often prove elusive for England bosses.
Even when Southgate found a winning formula, he often faced criticism for being too conservative in his selections. But then, when caretaker manager Lee Carsley went all guns blazing against Greece in a Nations League match in October 2024, the Three Lions lost 2-1 at Wembley. So what is Tuchel to do? Well, he has been around the block enough times to know that his priority is winning the two games. That should prove no problem against Andorra (despite only managing a single goal against them in June!).
But it will be more of a challenge against Serbia, where a hostile crowd and a dogged side coached by Dragan Stojković will no doubt attempt to make things as tricky as possible for the visitors. Indeed, Serbia earned a goalless draw with Spain in September 2024 in Belgrade and got the same result against Denmark in November. No doubt the Serbs would be happy with the same result against Tuchel’s men, so the Three Lions will need to find a way to break down their resolute defence, ideally early in the game.
In the absence of Bellingham, Palmer and Saka, three of the most effective players in terms of creating chances against stubborn opponents, the responsibility to open up the Serbian defence might fall to Eberechi Eze and Anthony Gordon. It could give one or both players the chance to shine, but if neither does, Tuchel’s options look a little limited in terms of attacking players who are proven on the international stage. Perhaps that is why Jarrod Bowen was brought in, as his swift, direct attacking play could prove effective. New Arsenal man Noni Madueke could also have a role to play.
Tuchel’s England Matches to Date
A clear objective for this camp 👊
— England (@England) August 29, 2025
So far, Tuchel has been in charge of England for four matches: three World Cup qualifiers and the aforementioned friendly defeat to Senegal. Things started off in solid-enough (if not spectacular) fashion as the Three Lions beat Albania 2-0 on home soil. Although England never looked in any trouble of losing at Wembley, it wasn’t quite the exciting performance Tuchel had promised. Goals from Arsenal youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly and the not-so-young goal machine Harry Kane gave England the three points.
Next up, England hosted Latvia, and a similarly effective (but hardly thrilling) performance saw the home side win 3-0. Reece James got the opener, before further goals from Kane and Eze made things respectable. The performance was decent enough, but there appeared to be a lack of creative drive at times, and some of the players appeared somewhat sluggish.
But those first two performances were far better than England’s lacklustre 1-0 victory over Andorra in June. Granted, it came at the end of a long season and most of the players would no doubt have rather been sunning themselves on a beach in wherever it is footballers go these days (presumably not Blackpool?). To their credit, Andorra, who were ranked 173rd in the world at the time, defended very well and held out until the 50th minute when Kane got the only goal of the game.
Finally, Tuchel’s first friendly gave him the chance to go into the summer in positive fashion and put the dismal Andorra game behind him. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out like that, and the 3-1 defeat to Senegal, coupled with the rather tepid display from the players, left many fans and pundits rather concerned about England’s prospects for the World Cup in the summer of 2026.
Tuchel still has time to turn things around, starting with the upcoming World Cup qualifiers. But if he doesn’t start getting big performances soon, there will be the inevitable calls for the FA to get rid of him. And who knows, maybe some will call for them to bring back the only man who’s got close to winning anything since 1966: Gareth Southgate.
