England Vs Latvia - Nations League: Live Score, Team News And Updates As Thomas Tuchel Makes FOUR Changes For His Second Game In Charge

Follow Mail Sport’s live blog for the latest score, team news and updates as England host Latvia at Wembley in the Nations League.

Kick-off closing in

Right guys, it’s nearly time.

The players are just finishing off their final preparations and then it will be go-time.

I have just clocked Morgan Rogers slapping in some bangers during that warm-up, which is a good sign.

Can he do it in the game, though?

75 strong for Pickford

Wow. I’m a little shocked.

It feels like just yesterday that a young Jordan Pickford was shining at Sunderland as a youngster.

Now, he is about to make his 75th appearance in between the sticks for England. It’s quite remarkable.

There don’t seem to be many up-and-coming stoppers coming through to challenge him for the shirt either, so it should be his for years to come.

Will he reach the magic century at some point? I think so.

Pickford: ‘Hopefully more to come’

Jordan Pickford, England goalkeeper, on ITV:

It is a great achievement [to reach 75 caps] and a lot of hard work has been put in and got to sustain those high levels, hopefully more to come.

We have got to make it an enjoyable game for the fans, we need to finish this week off with another win, score goals and keep a clean sheet.

On needing 50 more caps to reach Peter Shilton:

I’ll be prepared, keep my body right and 10 games a year, another 5 years I should keep the England shirt.

The Villa boys

I have just clocked that there are three Aston Villa players starting tonight.

Marcus Rashford, Morgan Rogers, and Ezri Konsa have all got the nod from Thomas Tuchel tonight.

It just goes to show how strong Aston Villa are these days, they really do have some top players.

The last time they had three players start for England was back in February 2009, when I was just eight.

It’s been a long old time…

‘Do enough so they can’t take you out’

Roy Keane, former Ireland international, on ITV:

I am a great believer in squad rotation and seeing the bigger picture, but do enough so they can’t take you out.

‘Bowen a consistently top performer’

Good to see Jarrod Bowen in the starting eleven. A consistently top performer. I hope we see him and Rashford doing Tuchel’s bidding and being more aggressive and direct on the flanks than England were against Albania.

The Kings of Qualifiers

England may not have won a major international trophy in nearly 60 years (yes, it has been that long), but there is no need to be sad.

Why be the kings of the world, when you can be the kings of qualifiers.

The Three Lions are unbeaten in their last 32 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, winning 24 of them, the longest ongoing run of any European nation.

OK, I’ll admit, I was being sarcastic at the start. Every Englishman would rather get their hands on silverware than just watch their country beat up minnows on the pitch every few months.

However, you’ve got to be in it to win it and that record at least shows that it’s pretty darn likely that Thomas Tuchel’s side will be in North and Central America next year.

It’s hard to see that unbeaten run ending tonight, isn’t it?

Football brings the fun

Just look at how happy everyone is.

Whenever people I know have a pop at football, I’m going to show them these photos.

This sport just brings so many people together and makes them so happy.

It also makes people sad… but we can avoid that part for now.

A first-ever meeting

We all love new things, don’t we?

I feel like in football it can get a bit samey, we always seem to see the same teams face off all the time. Whether that’s at club level or internationally.

Well, tonight we are getting the variety that we carve. It’s the first time that England and Latvia have ever met at the senior level of the men’s game.

Personally, my money is on England to get the job done – not that I bet. I know, it’s such a wild prediction.

It would be one hell of a story if Latvia did spring a shock, though.

Rogers all smiles

Now that is the face of a man who is about to make his first start for his country.

Just look at Morgan Rogers, he is beaming ear-to-ear.

The last time I had a smile that wide was when I saw M&S had restocked their chocolate bars after a week of them being sold out.

You may think an international call-up and eating chocolate are incomparable, but honestly, that bar is my favourite thing on earth (apologies to my partner).

In all seriousness, it’s lovely to see that Rogers is so relaxed and in high spirits ahead of the biggest night of his life.

Lovely day for footie

Before we get tucked into some more build-up, I thought it would be worth mentioning how lovely the weather has been in London today.

I mean, I’m British. I just can’t help myself.

After what wasn’t the best of weekends, those of us in the capital have been treated to a lovely sunny day.

I went out for a run earlier and I even thought about wearing some sun cream and shades.

Wembley was looking particularly glorious earlier, but sadly the sun is going down and the match will be played in darkness.

Still, it was nice while it lasted.

‘More adventure and freedom’

The most interesting thing about this team is that it points to a little more adventure and freedom. Tuchel spoke yesterday about having played Curtis Jones and Declan Rice together against Albania last Friday as their opponents had two decent attacking players in that area.

He hinted that he may not need that protection tonight and he has indeed taken the handbrake off a little bit. Rice is the only defensively minded player beyond the back four and it will be interesting to see how Morgan Rogers and Jude Bellingham work on those advanced areas behind Harry Kane.

Latvia Team News

Right guys, I have been looking for Latvia’s social media all day but just can’t seem to find it.

I may just be searching for the wrong thing, but I am just going to have to post the line-up manually.

I know, I know, we all love a graphic, but just this once we will have to go without one.

Here is their team news:

Latvia XI: Zviedris, Balodis, Cernomordijs, Gutkovskis, Ikaunieks, Savalnieks, Jurkovskis, Ciganiks, Zelenkovs, Jaunzems, Saveljevs.

Rogers’ time to shine

Now this is a selection I like to see.

Morgan Rogers has been raved about all season by football-lovers, including me, because of just how brilliant he has been.

I am going to go all Gen Z on you… he is a certified baller.

Thomas Tuchel has given the 22-year-old the chance to shine that he has earned. His performances at Aston Villa this season have warranted this sort of opportunity.

Rogers hasn’t had the chance to show his skills too much in his three substitute appearances for his country, so far, but I imagine tonight he will come out with his big boy boots on and want to put on a show.

I, for one, am looking forward to seeing him sparkle.

‘Big chances for Bowen and Rogers’

You’d think one of the wingers had to drop to the bench and it’s Foden rather than Rashford who gives way. Big opportunities for Jarrod Bowen and Morgan Rogers tonight, with Curtis Jones also among the substitutes.

Rogers impressed during Tuchel’s first week of training and could have considered himself unfortunate not to be given the nod on Friday night.

England Team News – Rogers STARTS

Sooooo, Thomas Tuchel does rotate.

After giving Myles Lewis-Skelly his first England start on Friday, Thomas Tuchel now hands a full debut to Morgan Rogers.

The 22-year-old is one of four changes to the side that beat Albania, with Marc Guehi and Reece James coming in as expected, while Jarrod Bowen replaces Phil Foden.

Marcus Rashford keeps his place.

‘Rashford’s recall gives him a boost’

Alan Shearer, former England captain, speaking to Betfair:

Marcus Rashford has been back to what we expect to see from him in recent matches. He seems to have got a spring in his step and his love back for the game. He has to continue that [the form at Aston Villa]. We all knew the ability was there, it was just whether he wanted to bring it out again, or whether someone could get it out of him, and Unai Emery is doing that.

It’s a big call from Thomas Tuchel because there are other players in Rashford’s position but there’s no doubt that he deserves the call-up. He was given another opportunity by Villa and it was up to him – and up to now, he’s taken it. The call-up will be a massive boost for his confidence. It’s a big call and when a big call goes your way, it gives you a huge lift.

Quansah and Gibbs-White involved

Want to know some more team news?

I know how much you all love early team news so I am going to give some more to you after the Reece James reveal.

Morgan Gibbs-White and Jarell Quansah will both be in the matchday squad tonight after being left out of the 23 for the game with Albania.

But who is missing out?

Well, once again Aaron Ramsdale will have to watch from the stands while Tino Livramento will not be involved this time around.

Anthony Gordon is of course injured, so he’s not about tonight.

‘Tuchel didn’t tell players the team until after 4pm’

Pieces of team news are starting to leak. Thomas Tuchel didn’t actually tell his players the team for tonight’s game until after 4pm which is almost unheard of.

So far, we know that Reece James will start – for the first time for England since 2022 – and feel that Marc Guehi and Marcus Rashford will also.

A chance for Rashford to show that he was listening to Tuchel’s call for him to be more direct in the wake of Friday night’s win against Albania.

Big day for James

Well, I’m not sure how many of us expected this change when we woke up this morning.

Come to think of it, I’m not quite sure why I didn’t expect Reece James to get a start, I just didn’t.

I guess Thomas Tuchel knows James really well from his time a Chelsea. The 2021-22 campaign was pretty much the last time the Blues captain kicked a ball consistently.

And my word was he good under Tuchel.

There has never been any doubt over James’ ability, it’s just all the fitness problems he has had over the last few years.

Tuchel’s appointment may have just provided the route back into international football that James needed. If he can stay fit, there is no reason why he shouldn’t go to the World Cup next year, if England get there of course.

Anyway, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. First, he has to perform tonight.

Can he shine again under the German?

‘Reece James starts’

Reece James will make his first England start since 2022 this evening, while Marc Guehi is also pushing to be involved from the first whistle.

Will Tuchel rotate?

Well, how are we all feeling after reading that?

I know that there were many supporters out there who weren’t the happiest with the side that started on Friday.

Phil Foden and Dan Burn were two players that took a lot of heat, and Marcus Rashford was questioned for his lack of output.

In the old England regime, you would expect the manager to switch it up quite a bit for the second game in the international break. There are usually wholesale changes.

However, reading what Tuchel had to say about rotation, I wonder if he is largely going to start the same team?

I mean, with Anthony Gordon now out injured and back in Newcastle it means he may just have to in an attacking sense.

He has made some changes to his squad, though…

Tuchel: ‘No one needs to be dropped’

Thomas Tuchel, England boss, speaking on Sunday:

At the moment, no one will be dropped from a performance point of view. We did what was needed. We can do better and have stuff to improve and we will focus on that.

If we think some fresh legs can help then we’re not shy to do it. But no one needs to be dropped because he’s not good enough.

What happened on Friday?

Guys, I am going to apologise in advance…

I’m sorry for having to make you relive Friday night’s game, but I need to give you a quick recap so you are all caught up.

If you didn’t watch the game against Albania – which would be surprising considering it was Thomas Tuchel’s first game in charge – then you are a lucky person.

Well, it was all pretty underwhelming.

Now, this is by no means me blaming Tuchel because he has only had a few days with his players, but my word it was a dull watch.

Goals from Myles Lewis-Skelly and Harry Kane got the job done, but not much else happened.

The main takeaway is that England may have found their left-back for the future, with Lewis-Skelly putting in a stellar display. I mean, he broke history by becoming the youngest Three Lions player to score on his debut.

Apart from that, though, Tuchel would not have learned a whole lot. I’m sure the training sessions would have taught him more about his side.

It will be interesting to see if the extra few days will have made a difference tonight.

I highly doubt it, mind.

Take two

The weekend went quickly, eh?

I feel like it’s been just a few hours since I closed my computer following the full-time whistle at Wembley. But nope, time has just flown by.

We are back at the crime scene of Friday night’s performance from England against Albania. Honestly, I got an incredible night’s sleep after that game just because of how boring it was.

Now that might sound a bit harsh considering the Three Lions got the win – in what was Thomas Tuchel’s first match in charge – but it really was dull.

This time it’s the turn of Latvia to come to the national stadium, and here is to hoping that we are at least a little more entertained than last week.

Looking back at the last few paragraphs, it looks like I’m not excited about the game, but that’s not the case. If you know me well, I just love a moan from time to time.

Anyway, that’s enough of my grumblings… let’s get the ball rolling.

Key Updates

England Team News – Rogers STARTS

England Vs Latvia – Nations League: Live Score, Team News And Updates As Thomas Tuchel Makes FOUR Changes For His Second Game In Charge