Thomas Tuchel says he will not drop anyone from the England team on the basis of their performance against Albania but is “not afraid” to ring the changes.
England face Latvia at Wembley on Monday night, back at the stadium where they beat an ultra-defensive Albanian side 2-0 on Friday.
The new England manager admitted his side “lost structure” in the second half and namechecked both Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden in his post-match complaints about the performance.
But he did not rule out an unchanged side in a cagey pre-match press conference ahead of the clash with Latvia, who are ranked 140 in the world.
“We have reasons to let all of them play again and say ‘let’s do better’, but we also have reports from the physical department of some concerns. So let’s see,” Tuchel said.
“It’s only the second day after the match and we need to be cautious.
“Maybe it will be a mix between both. We have two or three players who felt their legs after the match but let’s see. We have quite some time.
“No-one will be dropped from a performance point of view but if we have fresh legs available we are not afraid to do it.”
What is Tuchel likely to change?
Wide players Foden and Rashford did not see the final whistle against Albania and Tuchel called for “more dribbling and more aggressive runs” from the flanks.
He did row back on some of that criticism on Sunday, insisting underlying data showed Rashford had been effective in pressing and his effort levels, but out-of-position Foden looks set to be stood down from his right wing commission.
Jarrod Bowen replaced him and played a role in the second goal. The West Ham forward’s more direct style would appear to suit Tuchel’s desire for wide players to make runs in behind and drive at defenders.
Morgan Rogers came off the bench and has been talked up unprompted in the past by Tuchel. Morgan Gibbs-White was also praised for his performance in training by the German but looks likely to start on the bench.
Given Latvia’s relative strength – or lack thereof – Tuchel may also be tempted to play Jordan Henderson at the base of midfield and give Declan Rice added licence to go further forward as he sometimes does at club level. Alternatively, Rice may remain in a defensive position but without a midfield partner, allowing Tuchel to name both Rogers and Bowen in the forward line.
At the back, Dan Burn was not given much of a test on debut on Friday but it would be a surprise not to see Marc Guehi restored after making 13 appearances for England last year at the expense of the Newcastle man.
And Tuchel has talked about protecting the likes of Myles Lewis-Skelly, who in his first season of regular top-tier football has already played nearly 30 games, and so could rotate at full-back: Reece James was a late substitute against Albania, but Levi Colwill would be a more like-for-like replacement on the left side of defence.
Predicted England team vs Latvia (4-2-3-1): Pickford; Walker, Guehi, Konsa, Colwill; Rice, Henderson; Rogers, Bellingham, Rashford; Kane
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