England will be aiming to avoid suffering an unwanted 66-year first when they square off with Latvia in Monday’s World Cup 2026 qualifier at Wembley.
Thomas Tuchel‘s crop come into the encounter as overwhelming favourites to get the job done in their second game under the German, who oversaw a 2-0 success over Albania in his inaugural match as head coach.
Myles Lewis-Skelly‘s history-making debut goal and Harry Kane‘s 70th for his nation got Tuchel off to a winning start, even if England’s second-half performance was laborious for the most part.
Meanwhile, Latvia’s Group K campaign commenced with a narrow 1-0 triumph away to Andorra, meaning that Monday’s affair represents an early top-of-the-table encounter, with England leading the way on goal difference.
The Wembley showdown will also mark the first time that England and Latvia have ever met in a senior men’s international, just over three years on from England Women’s breathtaking 20-0 win over Latvia’s Women’s team in late 2021.
England aiming for 57th consecutive win in first-time match
© Imago
The men’s team may not be able to replicate such an astonishing scoreline, but they are out to extend a terrific sequence on Monday, having not lost any of their last 56 matches when facing a country for the first time.
The Three Lions last suffered such a defeat in their first-ever meeting with Mexico in May 1959, where Walter Winterbottom oversaw a 2-1 loss in a friendly at Estadio Olimpico Universitario.
Since that narrow defeat, England have won 42 and drawn 14 of their 56 inaugural matches against a particular country, and Tuchel’s men will naturally be backed to make that 57 without too much fuss.
While England are on an astounding 38-match unbeaten run in World Cup and Euros qualifiers, Latvia are on a 13-game losing run across all competitions against teams starting the day in the top 10 of the FIFA rankings.
The visitors’ last such win came over a then eighth-ranked Turkey side in November 2003, and if Tuchel oversees another win, he will become the first England boss since Fabio Capello in 2008 to prevail in both of his opening competitive contests.
On the other hand, Tuchel could become the first Three Lions manager since Sir Alf Ramsey in 1963 to lose either one of his first two competitive games, although the latter was leading the nation to World Cup glory just three years later.
What changes could Tuchel make for Latvia game?
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With just 72 hours to recuperate in between matches, Tuchel is unlikely to shy away from a few changes, and the former Chelsea boss will be missing Anthony Gordon owing to his withdrawal through a hip injury.
The Newcastle United man replaced Marcus Rashford for the closing stages of Friday’s win over Albania, but the latter failed to impress Tuchel, who may now choose to give his Aston Villa teammate Morgan Rogers his full debut.
Phil Foden also struggled to make an impact against Albania, so Jarrod Bowen is a contender to start on the right-hand side, while Jordan Henderson, Marc Guehi, Levi Colwill, Tino Livramento and Reece James are all alternative options further back.
Following Monday’s match, England are not back in action until the summer, when they head to Andorra for a World Cup qualifier on June 7 before a friendly with Senegal at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground.
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