England manager Thomas Tuchel has recalled Morgan Gibbs-White for Monday’s match against Latvia, but three senior players miss out. Anthony Gordon was already set to sit out the game through injury, while Tino Livramento and Aaron Ramsdale are also absent from the matchday group.
Nottingham Forest star Gibbs-White was omitted from England’s initial 26-man squad, only to come in after Cole Palmer’s withdrawal. He wasn’t part of the matchday 23 for the Friday night victory over Albania, but could now get his chance.
Tuchel had been considering handing Gordon a late start against Latvia, only for the Newcastle star to pick up a late injury against Albania. “It’s just a matter of pain, there’s a big bruise around the hip region and he’s unable to walk properly,” the manager explained.
“He left camp. He has a huge bruise around the hip region and was it so painful he couldn’t even walk properly. He needs some time to heal and to get better. That’s why he left camp. It’s a shame because he had a good chance to start, and I’m sad that he is now out.”
Goals from Myles Lewis-Skelly and Harry Kane ensured England emerge victorious in Tuchel’s first game in charge. Another home win on Monday night would complete a perfect start to the World Cup qualifying campaign – with Serbia and Andorra the remaining teams in the group – and defender Ezri Konsa is targeting a win.
“We go into every game, no matter who we’re playing in the game, to win, and that’s all that we want to do as players,” Konsa said. “We want to win, and no matter who we face, Latvia on Monday, we’re going to go out with the game plan and try and execute it.
“The manager has only worked with us a week now, there’s things that he wants us to improve on, and we’re going to go back to watch videos and see what he wants us to improve on.”
