England delivered a commanding 5-0 victory over Serbia in a World Cup qualifier, prompting Thomas Tuchel to hail their performance as a new standard. Debut goals, a Kane strike, and a Rashford penalty sealed the win, with Elliot Anderson and Declan Rice also earning praise.
Thomas Tuchel has lauded England's performance in their recent World Cup qualifier against Serbia, declaring that the Three Lions have set a new benchmark for future displays. England demolished Serbia 5-0, showcasing a potent attacking force and solid defense.
The match saw first international goals for Noni Madueke, Ezri Konsa, and Marc Guehi, adding to the excitement. Veteran Harry Kane secured his 74th international goal, while Marcus Rashford converted a late penalty, compounding Serbia's misery. The Serbians' woes were further deepened by a red card issued to Nottingham Forest center-back Nikola Milenkovic for a rash challenge on Kane. The defeat marked Serbia's largest-ever competitive loss on home turf.
Remarkably, Tuesday's game was only the third instance since England's 1966 World Cup victory where three different players scored their debut international goals in a single match. The previous occurrences were in October 2020 against Wales (Danny Ings, Conor Coady, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin) and in November 2024 versus the Republic of Ireland (Anthony Gordon, Conor Gallagher, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, and Jarrod Bowen).
Following criticism for their perceived lack of creativity in the preceding 2-0 win over Andorra, England displayed a significant improvement in their attacking intent. They registered more than twice as many shots (24) compared to the Andorra game (11). Their expected goals (xG) also saw a substantial increase, rising from 1.94 to 4.49.
Tuchel, speaking to ITV Sport, emphasized that England must consistently replicate this level of performance as their campaign progresses into October. "I’m more than happy for the team and the staff," he said. "We had an excellent week from start to finish. We just proved what I saw every day in this camp. We played with a lot of intensity; it was teamwork in its purest form." From there, we showed our quality. We limited Serbia to no shots on target, you need to put in a lot of work and have intensity in the duels. We did this in all positions.
"We learned from the first two camps. We had three weeks of training together, that normally is half a pre-season. So, it takes a bit of time. In between those weeks, there was a pause for weeks. We started new and fresh after the first two camps. The first camp was very good, the second camp was so-so. We started new, gave the players clarity in their roles and the structure we are playing. From this, we gave them the responsibility to bring it to life, and they did excellently. Credit goes to them; they did amazingly. That is the bar."
Elliot Anderson impressed in midfield alongside Declan Rice, building on his strong showing against Andorra. Anderson led England players in both matches in successful passes (182), passes in the final third (66), forward passes (48), possession won (23), duels won (14), aerial duels won (7) and tackles (5).
Rice praised his midfield partner, saying, "He made it look so easy. He has done what he has been doing at his club for two years. He is a great addition to the squad. We need competition, and we need lads at their best."
Signing off from September camp in style! pic.twitter.com/teCXAiOzKj
— England (@England) September 9, 2025