Thomas Tuchel takes charge of England for the first time this week, but it will be in World Cup qualifying rather than the Nations League.
The German was confirmed as England boss back in October but interim manager Lee Carsley took charge of wins over Greece and Ireland in November.
There has been a big wait for the next international fixtures since then and Tuchel finally gets a chance to pick an England team this week.
The former Chelsea boss has already had to address a controversial selection after confirming a surprise recall for veteran midfielder Jordan Henderson.
The former Liverpool captain turns 35 in June and hasn’t played for England since 2023, but Tuchel feels he is the right man to have around the squad.
‘Jordan is a serial winner,’ said Tuchel. ‘He is captain of Ajax. He is available and has played a lot of matches. What he brings to every team is leadership, character, personality, energy.
‘He makes sure that everyone lives by standards and with this characteristic he embodies everything that we try to build. We try to build a team for our fans and a team that they are proud of and can identity with. Jordan embodies everything that we want from this team.’
Why are England not in the Nations League this week?
England did play in the Nations League but are not involved this week as they are in neither the quarter-finals nor the promotion/relegation play-offs.
The Three Lions topped Group B2 of the competition, ahead of Greece, Ireland and Finland.
This means they have secured promotion to League A for the 2026/27 edition of the competition and their involvement this time round is at an end.
The quarter-finals onwards are still to be played, which feature the top two teams from the four groups in League A.
There are also the promotion/relegation play-offs to be determined, which see teams that finished third in League A groups facing nations which finished second in League B groups.
Third-placed League B teams take on second-placed League C sides, while the two best performing fourth-placed League C nations play the two second-placed League D countries.
Nations League fixtures
Quarter-finals
First and second legs on March 20 and 23
Netherlands vs Spain
Croatia vs France
Denmark vs Portugal
Italy vs Germany
Semi Finals: June 4 & 5
Final: June 8
Promotion/relegation play-offs
First and second legs on March 20 and 23
League A vs League B
Türkiye vs Hungary
Ukraine vs Belgium
Austria vs Serbia
Greece vs Scotland
League B vs League C
Kosovo vs Iceland
Bulgaria vs Republic of Ireland
Armenia vs Georgia
Slovakia vs Slovenia
League C vs League D
Gibraltar vs Latvia
Malta vs Luxembourg
When do England play next?
England have World Cup qualifying games to play in the coming days as they take on Albania on Friday (21) and then Latvia on Monday (24), both at Wembley.
They are next in action after this international break when they travel to take on Andorra in another World Cup qualifier on June 7, followed by a friendly at the City Ground, Nottingham three days later.
Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Southampton), James Trafford (Burnley)
Defenders: Dan Burn (Newcastle United), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Reece James (Chelsea), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Jarell Quansah (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (AC Milan, loan from Manchester City)
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Jordan Henderson (Ajax), Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa)
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Marcus Rashford (Aston Villa, loan from Manchester United), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham Hotspur)
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