England are set to host Latvia at Wembley Stadium in a top-of-the-table clash in Group K of the UEFA 2026 World Cup Qualifiers.
Having secured a win in his first match in charge of England, Thomas Tuchel will now be eyeing consecutive wins when they host Latvia on Monday evening. Both teams kick-started their World Cup qualifying campaigns with a win and will be looking to build on it at Wembley.
The Three Lions kick-started a new era under the former Chelsea boss with a 2-0 win over Albania. They went ahead with a classic 4-2-3-1 formation, dominated the proceedings and got the desired result.
Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly stole the show as he became the youngest to score on debut for England. They hardly had any trouble taking down Albania, and it should be pretty much the same against Latvia.
The visitors secured a 1-0 win over Andorra in their first qualifying fixture. They dominated the ball and got themselves on the scoresheet to claim the all-important three points. Despite not being at their best in the final third, Latvia got the desired result.
However, it won’t be that easy against the Three Lions. Latvia will have to punch above their weight if they want to get something out of this fixture. The Hard Tackle takes a close look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.
Team News & Tactics
England
Anthony Gordon suffered a knock in their last outing after coming on as a second-half substitute. While there is no official update on his hip injury, the Newcastle United attacker is unlikely to be involved here.
Thomas Tuchel will certainly look to shuffle the back as he assesses all the options at his disposal. He will stick to the 4-2-3-1 formation, where Jordan Pickford will be in goal. Reece James and Tino Livramento could be the full-backs, while Marc Guehi should pair up with Levi Colwill in the heart of the defence.
As for the midfield unit, Jordan Henderson and Declan Rice could form the double pivot in the middle of the park. They will look to control the tempo, while Jude Bellingham will continue in the number ten role. Jarred Bowen and Morgan Rogers could feature on the flanks, while skipper Harry Kane should continue to lead the line for England against Latvia.
Probable Lineup (4-3-2-1): Pickford; James, Guehi, Colwill, Livramento; Rice, Henderson; Bowen, Bellingham, Rogers; Kane
Latvia
While Deniss Melniks was taken off at half-time in their last outing, it was more of a tactical change rather than any injury concern. Latvia should have a fully fit squad to choose from in this fixture against England.
The visitors are unlikely to make any major changes to the XI that started against Andorra. They will stick to the 3-4-2-1 formation, where Krisjanis Zviedris will be in goal.
Daniels Balodis, Antonijs Cernomordijs, and Raivis Jurkovskis should form the back three. They will receive significant support from Roberts Savalnieks and Andrejs Ciganiks, who will feature as wing-backs.
In the centre of the park, Deniss Melniks should partner with Aleksejs Saveljevs. They would like to ensure England midfielders do not dominate the ball too deep in their half. Dmitrijs Zelenkovs and Janis Ikaunieks will be the two attacking midfielders behind Vladislavs Gutkovskis, who should continue as the lone forward for Latvia against England.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Zviedris; Jurkovskis, Balodis, Cernomordijs; Savalnieks, Melniks, Savaljevs, Ciganiks; Zelenkovs, Ikaunieks; Gutkovskis
Key Stats
- Thomas Tuchel became England’s 11th consecutive permanent manager to secure a win in his first outing.
- Latvia have an impressive record on the road as they have managed to avoid defeat in each of their last five World Cup qualifiers.
- Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly became the youngest-ever England player to score on debut last time out.
- This is all set to be the first-ever meeting between England and Latvia at the senior men’s international stage.
- England have not lost a World Cup qualifying game at home since October 2000.
Player to Watch
Jude Bellingham
At just 21, Bellingham is already a mainstay at both club and country. While the Englishman did not have the best of starts to the 2024/25 season, Real Madrid did eventually pick up the pace. The youngster has 22 goal contributions at the club level, and he will be eager to make a mark for the Three Lions when they take the field against Latvia. He can surely have a big say on the end result of this fixture.
Prediction
England 4-0 Latvia
While England did secure a 2-0 win in Thomas Tuchel’s first game, they might not be happy with their output in the final third. The former Chelsea boss will certainly shuffle the back, but he will still be eyeing a bigger win this time around.
Latvia will try to punch above their weight and script a historic upset, but they do not really have enough firepower to do that and topple England. The Hard Tackle predicts a 4-0 win for the home team.
