Three England players hoping to impress against Latvia as Thomas Tuchel plots changes

Evening Standard

·24 March 2025

Three England players hoping to impress against Latvia as Thomas Tuchel plots changes

Tottenham star among those looking to make an impact in World Cup qualifier at Wembley

Thomas Tuchel has warned club coaches that he will not rotate his England side for the sake of it against Latvia, even as the season reaches a defining stage.

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The new England head coach has, though, hinted at changes for Monday’s World Cup qualifier at Wembley after starting the campaign with a no-nonsense 2-0 win over Albania on Friday, settled by goals from debutant Myles Lewis-Skelly and captain Harry Kane.

With a tight turnaround between the matches and Tuchel presumably keen to have a look at as many players as possible, there could be some notable changes to the lineup against Latvia, who began their own qualifying campaign with a 1-0 win in Andorra.

Here are three England players pushing to impress against Latvia…

Marc Guehi

The inclusion of Dan Burn ahead of Marc Guehi against Albania was arguably the biggest surprise in Tuchel's first England XI.

Marc Guehi is set to start at centre-back after being left out against Albania

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Guehi established himself as an England regular towards the end of Gareth Southgate's tenure, and was among their most consistent players at Euro 2024.

With both Harry Maguire and John Stones sidelined through injury this month, the Crystal Palace centre-half - who has attracted big-money bids from Newcastle and Tottenham in the past year - was a seemingly obvious candidate to keep his place under Tuchel.

Instead, Burn became England's oldest full debutant in 15 years, while Ezri Konsa partnered him at the back in what appeared to be a complete upheaval of the defensive hierarchy.

Burn, though, was very shaky defensively against Albania, particularly in the second half, and Tuchel must now decide whether to stick with the 6ft 7in Newcastle defender or give Guehi and/or Chelsea's Levi Colwill a chance to impress at Wembley against Latvia.

Morgan Rogers

Tuchel was mildly critical of the performances of wingers Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford against Albania, saying the pair were not as impactful as they normally are at club level - although suggested the whole team was partly at fault for the quality of their service.

With Bukayo Saka, Cole Palmer and now Anthony Gordon, who has withdrawn from the squad after picking up a hip injury on Friday, all unavailable, the German is short of England's usual glittering array of options in the front line.

Morgan Rogers has shone for Aston Villa this season and is in line to start in midfield

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Jarrod Bowen is pushing for a start if Tuchel decides to rotate his wingers, while Morgan Rogers, who was a late substitute on Friday, is also in the frame, having lined up on the right of the front line in three of Aston Villa's last four matches.

Rogers made his first England appearances as a sub in the Nations League games against Greece and Ireland in November and has been on fine form for Villa in a variety of positions this season.

With Jude Bellingham, Foden and Palmer all likely to be ahead of him in the pecking order at No10, playing wide for England appears to be the 22-year-old's best route to significant minutes under Tuchel.

Dominic Solanke

For all the talk of Tuchel's new approach and tweaks to Southgate's system, it was a moment of characteristic brilliance from Kane which finally settled the win over Albania.

Dominic Solanke will be hoping to get some action off the bench

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Underwhelming at the Euros and dropped by interim head coach Lee Carsley for his penultimate game in charge, Kane nonetheless looks set to be every bit as crucial to Tuchel as he was to Southgate - but finding a Plan B when the captain is absent or simply struggling for fitness remains crucial.

Ollie Watkins emerged as the clear alternative to Kane late in Southgate's tenure but the Aston Villa forward is missing from Tuchel's first squad with a knee injury, opening the door for an opportunity for Dominic Solanke against Latvia.

Solanke, who has been outstanding for Toittenham this season when fit, already has an assist in an England shirt, setting up Bellingham's equaliser in the dismal 2-1 defeat to Greece under Carsley - a moment that has understandably been memory-holed since.

He also made a late cameo in the 5-0 thrashing of the Republic of Ireland in November, and is now pushing for more minutes - most likely from the bench - against Latvia.