England rout Serbia 5-0 as Tuchel era hits clear stride, youngsters stake claims

England produced a convincing 5-0 victory over Serbia on Tuesday that all but secured their place at next summer’s World Cup in North America, with five different players on the scoresheet and several young faces staking claims for regular roles under manager Thomas Tuchel.

The win at the Rajko Mitić Stadium left England with five wins from five qualifiers and moved Tuchel’s side close to sealing qualification. Two of the goals were the first for the scorers in an England shirt, and the performance was described by observers as possibly the best under the new coach so far.

A key talking point from the match was the performance of Morgan Rogers, who started in the advanced midfield role in place of the injured Jude Bellingham. Rogers produced incisive passing and creative moments, setting up one goal with a threaded through-ball and providing an assist with a deft flick to break Serbia’s resistance. His contribution prompted discussion about his suitability in the No. 10 role while Bellingham completes his recovery.

Elliot Anderson was again singled out for praise after another influential display. The 22-year-old, who plays his club football with Nottingham Forest, was credited with driving forward play, breaking lines and linking attacks. Observers described Anderson as the most important discovery of the recent international period, noting his willingness to carry the ball into dangerous areas and to follow his passes into the final third.

Captain Harry Kane increased his international tally to 74 goals with one of the strikes and was more involved than in the previous fixture against Andorra, where he had only 12 touches. By the hour mark against Serbia, Kane had touched the ball 24 times and his movement and one-touch layoffs were cited as central to England’s attacking fluidity. A run from Kane also led to a red card for Serbia defender Nikola Milenković in the second half after a foul that halted a clear attacking opportunity.

Defensively, the new-look centre-back pairing of Ezri Konsa and Marc Guéhi both contributed to the scoreline, each finding the net as England rarely had to defend. The two defenders’ goals added to evidence that Tuchel now has multiple positional options and raised the prospect that Konsa and Guéhi could form a stable partnership heading into the World Cup. Tuchel has also identified Tino Livramento as a candidate for the left-back role; Livramento’s forays beyond the winger and ability to break defensive predictability were noted as key elements of England’s attacking balance, alongside Reece James on the other flank.

Tuchel had told his squad that the fixture would bring out their best, and the final 25 minutes of the first half—during which England scored twice—was described by reporters as the period that most resembled the progressive, high-tempo football the manager has outlined since his appointment. England extended that momentum into the second half with three further goals, taking advantage of quick transitions and incisive forward passing.

The result will ease immediate qualification pressure and give Tuchel a broader set of options to consider for the World Cup. The appearance of younger players in advanced roles, coupled with contributions from defenders and full-backs, presented an image of a more fluid and varied attack than in some prior matches.

Tuchel and his coaching staff will now prepare for the remaining qualifiers knowing the team has depth across several positions. Selection decisions on whether to persist with the Rogers–Anderson combination, how to integrate Bellingham upon his return, and which central-defensive pairing to retain are likely to dominate discussion in the weeks before squad naming and the tournament itself.

For the players, the performance offered both individual markers and collective reassurance. For Tuchel, the emphatic victory over Serbia supplied a timely demonstration of the squad’s capacity to deliver a convincing result on a larger stage as England move closer to securing a place at next summer’s World Cup.