England manager Thomas Tuchel has confirmed that he will not use the team’s penultimate World Cup qualifier against Serbia on Nov. 13 as an opportunity to experiment with the squad.
The Three Lions have already secured their place at next year’s FIFA World Cup, to be held across the United States, Canada and Mexico, after an impeccable qualifying campaign.
Tuchel’s side has dominated Group K, winning all six of their matches without conceding a single goal. Their most recent victory came against Latvia, where Harry Kane scored twice in a comfortable win at Daugavas Stadiona. England became the first European nation to book their ticket to the 2026 World Cup last month, maintaining a perfect record of six wins with 18 goals scored.
Serbia, meanwhile, find themselves in third place in Group K, one point behind Albania, who currently occupy the second-place playoff spot. The Serbians conclude their qualifying campaign against Latvia this weekend, while Albania face winless Andorra before hosting England in their final fixture.
Thursday’s clash at Wembley will also mark a new beginning for Serbia, with Veljko Paunović taking charge for the first time after former manager Dragan Stojković resigned following last month’s shock home defeat to Albania.
With England already qualified, the pressure is off Tuchel’s men, but the German manager is keen to maintain momentum and consistency. Anything short of a comfortable win for the Three Lions at Wembley would come as a major surprise, given their dominant form so far.
England vs Serbia: Venue
England will clash against Serbia in the iconic Wembley Stadium in London.
England vs Serbia: Date, Kickoff Time
The England vs Serbia FIFA World Cup Qualifiers is scheduled to kick off at 1:15 a.m. Indian Standard Time on Friday.
England vs Serbia: Referee
Ivan Kruzliak of Slovakia will be the match referee for the England vs Serbia contest.
England vs Serbia: Predicted Line-Ups
England: Jordan Pickford (GK); Reece James, Ezri Konsa, John Stones, Djed Spence; Elliot Anderson, Declan Rice; Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, Marcus Rashford; Harry Kane.
Serbia: Djordje Petrovic (GK); Milos Veljkovic, Nikola Milenkovic, Strahinja Pavlovic; Andrija Zivkovic, Sasa Lukic, Nemanja Gudelj, Lazar Samardzic, Filip Kostic; Luka Jovic, Dusan Vlahovic.
England vs Serbia: Head-To-Head Record
The two teams had faced each other 17 times, with England winning eight of them and Serbia emerging victorious on four occasions. Five matches have ended in a draw. In their last match, England crushed the Serbians 5-0 in September.
England vs Serbia: How To Watch Live Telecast?
The match will be televised live in India on the Sony Sports 3 television channel.
England vs Serbia: How To Watch Live Streaming?
The match will be available for live streaming on the SonyLiv app and website.