England return to Wembley on Thursday for their final home match of the World Cup 2026 qualifying campaign, facing a Serbia side still battling for a potential playoff place in Group K.
Thomas Tuchel’s team have already secured qualification with two games to spare. England top the group with a perfect record of six wins from six, scoring 18 goals and keeping six consecutive clean sheets. Their 5-0 victory over Latvia last month confirmed their place at the tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico.
Despite a pair of unexpectedly narrow performances against Andorra earlier in the campaign, England have found their attacking rhythm in recent months and approach this fixture seeking a seventh straight win in Group K.
Serbia arrive in London with their qualification hopes still alive. The visitors sit one point behind second-placed Albania and must avoid defeat to remain in contention. Their recent form includes a 3-1 win over Andorra, but they have conceded seven goals across their last three qualifiers. This will also be the first match for new head coach Veljko Paunović, who replaces Dragan Stojković.
England claimed a convincing 5-0 win in the reverse fixture in September, their strongest performance of the campaign, and will aim to replicate that level again at Wembley.
Team News
England are without Nick Pope and Anthony Gordon, both ruled out through injury, while Marc Guehi is unlikely to feature. Trevoh Chalobah and James Trafford have been drafted into the squad, which also includes uncapped players Jarell Quansah, Alex Scott and Nico O’Reilly.
Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden return, though only Bellingham is expected to start. Jordan Pickford could equal Joe Hart’s total of 43 clean sheets for England.
Serbia travel without their all-time leading scorer Aleksandar Mitrović, who misses out due to injury. In his absence, Dusan Vlahović is expected to lead the attack, supported by Luka Jović or Filip Kostić. Paunović is likely to deploy a back four, differing from the three-centre-back system favoured under his predecessor.
Possible Lineups
England:
Pickford; James, Konsa, Stones, Burn; Anderson, Rice; Saka, Bellingham, Rashford; Kane
Serbia:
Petrović; Mimović, Milenković, Pavlović, Terzić; Gudelj, Lukić; Živković, Samardžić, Kostić; Vlahović
Prediction
England 3–1
Serbia Serbia’s need to attack may cause moments of danger for the hosts, but England’s superior quality and recent attacking form should see them maintain their perfect record in Group K.
