England are the overwhelming favourites to win this game and will be looking to record a very convincing win.
The Three Lions have scored an average of 3.5 goals per game in their last four outings, while Latvia have shipped three or more goals against sides like North Macedonia and Armenia in the last year.
We do, then, think Thomas Tuchel's men will put Latvia to the sword here. England 5-0 Latvia.
England are looking to make it two wins from two under Thomas Tuchel as they take on Latvia in World Cup qualifying this week.
The Three Lions got off to a good start under Thomas Tuchel on Friday night as they beat Albania 2-0 at Wembley. In what was a mixed performance, a few highlight moments stood out, most notably 18-year-old Myles Lewis-Skelly scoring on his international debut.
Ezri Konsa also delivered an impressive showing at centre-back, staking his claim for a place in the starting XI for the Tuchel era. Dan Burn also did fairly well on his debut, while Curtis Jones showed some qualities in midfield that had long been missing in the Southgate era. As ever, Jude Bellingham showed why he's the best player in the England squad and should be the centrepiece of the team, as he provided an exquisite assist for Lewis-Skelly's opener.
Tuchel's verdict was one of restrained praise and constructive criticism, with the England manager recognising the things the team did well in the first half while acknowledging the decline in the performance in the second half. It's still very early days in the German's tenure, and it's going to take a few camps for him to really make an impact on the side.
The most negative talking point coming out of the game was, once again, Phil Foden. Last season's Premier League Player of the Season has been struggling in a City shirt all season, but more importantly, he's been struggling in an England shirt even longer. Foden was once again a fairly anonymous figure, and those (of which there were many) who were calling for him to dropped from the squad have been vindicated. Foden has not become a bad player overnight, he's still got bags of quality, but a stint outside of the England team might do him some good.
England will want the insurance of a commanding goal difference tally so they'll be out to score a few goals here. The Three Lions have never faced off against Latvia before so this is bit of a landmark occasion, even if it isn't a particularly grand fixture.
Latvia got their World Cup qualification campaign off to a winning start as they beat Andorra 1-0 away from home on Friday night. The Eastern Europeans are firmly expected to finish 4th in this group, and their overall goal will be to spring a surprise and claim a 3rd place finish.
That is quite a long shot, though, since they're ranked exceptionally low on the global scale, with FIFA currently regarding them as the 140th-best side in the world. For comparison, Serbia are ranked 32nd and Albania 65th.
The only sides Latvia have beaten in the last two years are Andorra, the Faroe Islands and Armenia, so just picking up a few points will likely constitute a successful campaign as far as they're concerned. The majority of the squad ply their trade in the Latvian Higher League, but fans of Scottish football might recognise St Johnstone defender Daniels Balodis, but otherwise, there are few names of note in this squad.
This game will be a task of damage limitation for Latvia from the off. If they can avoid losing by more than three goals, they'll probably be very pleased.
This game will be televised live to all UK viewers on ITV1.
England Team News:
Anthony Gordon appeared to sustain a hip injury right at the death on Friday night so he'll likely be missing for this one.
Tuchel will likely make one or two changes for this one, with Reece James hoping to come into the starting XI.
Predicted lineup: Pickford; James, Konsa, Burn, Lewis-Skelly; Rice, Jones; Bowen, Bellingham, Rashford; Kane.
Latvia Team News:
The visitors are unlikely to make many changes to the side that faced Andorra on Friday.
However, Dario Sits will be hoping to come into the starting XI after scoring the winner off the bench.
Predicted lineup: Zviedris; Balodis, Cernomordijs; Jurkovskis; Savalnieks, Melniks, Saveljevs, Ciganiks; Zelenkovs, Ikaunieks; Sits.
England:
England come into this game with four wins and one defeat from their last five games. The Three Lions beat Albania 2-0 on Friday night thanks to goals from Myles Lewis-Skelly and Harry Kane, a result that followed a 5-0 win over Ireland, with the goals coming from Harry Kane, Anthony Gordon, Conor Gallagher, Jarrod Bowen and Taylor Harwood-Bellis.
Before that, England recorded 3-0 win away in Greece courtesy of goals from Ollie Watkins, Curtis Jones and an own goal, which came after a 3-1 win over Finland - thanks to Jack Grealish, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Declan Rice - and a 1-2 loss to Greece at Wembley.
Latvia:
Latvia's form is much poorer, as they come into this game with just one win from their last five outings. On Friday night, a second half goal from Dario Sits gave them a 1-0 win over Andorra, a result that was preceded by a 1-2 defeat to Armenia and a 1-0 loss against North Macedonia.
Prior to that, another goal from Dario Sits played a part in Latvia holding the Faroe Islands to a 1-1 draw, which was preceded by a 0-3 hammering at the hands of North Macedonia.
WC Qualification Europe - Group K | Pos | Club | P | W | D | L | GD | PTS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  England | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | +5 | 6 | |
| 2 |  Albania | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +1 | 3 | |
| 3 |  Latvia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 3 | |
| 4 |  Serbia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 |  Andorra | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -4 | 0 | |
| Last updated 26/03/2025 | ||||||||
