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On Friday, October 3, England confirmed their squad for the next week’s matches against Wales and Latvia, dropping Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden in a major turn of events. Apart from that, in a big boost to head coach Thomas Tuchel and his management, Bukayo Saka has returned to the squad after missing out on last month’s wins over Andorra and Serbia in the World Cup Qualifiers due to a hamstring injury.
Notably, Bukayo Saka has made his return to the England set-up at the expense of his Arsenal teammate Noni Madueke, who suffered a knee problem and got sidelined until November. Jack Grealish has also missed out on making it to the England squad while Jarell Quansah has replaced Tino Livramento after the latter is confirmed to be out of action for eight weeks due to an injury to his knee.
England could confirm their spot in FIFA World Cup 2026 with a win and two draws in remaining qualifying matches
England will be taking on Wales in an international friendly on Thursday, October 9, at the Wembley Stadium in London before travelling to Riga to play against Latvia in the World Cup Qualifier at the Daugava National Stadium on October 14. A win for England in Latvia will put them within touching distance of making the FIFA World Cup 2026, needing two more points in their final two qualifying matches against Serbia and Albania.
Thomas Tuchel spoke about wanting continuity within the England squad, but the injury and form issues are too hard to ignore in regards to any of the players.
Below is England’s 24-member squad for the upcoming matches against Wales and Latvia:
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson, Jordan Pickford, James Trafford
Defenders: Dan Burn, Marc Guehi, Reece James, Ezri Konsa, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Jarell Quansah, Djed Spence, John Stones
Midfielders: Elliot Anderson, Morgan Gibbs-White, Jordan Henderson, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Declan Rice, Morgan Rogers
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen, Eberechi Eze, Anthony Gordon, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Ollie Watkins
