England host Serbia in a World Cup qualifier on Thursday evening which has a lot more significance for the visitors than the home side.
Thomas Tuchel’s Three Lions became the first European nation to qualify for next summer’s tournament last month after racking up a perfect run of six wins, scoring 18 goals while conceding precisely zero. Serbia, by contrast, are third in Group K, one point behind Albania who reside in the second-place, playoff spot.
Serbia conclude their qualification campaign against Latvia this weekend while Albania, who are up against winless Andorra tonight, host England in their final qualifier.
Thursday’s Wembley clash will be Veljko Paunović’s first match in the dugout after Dragan Stojković resigned from his post as Serbia manager following last month’s shock home defeat to Albania. Anything other than an easy England win would represent an even bigger surprise.
What Time Does England vs. Serbia Kick-Off?
- Location: London, England
- Stadium: Wembley Stadium
- Date: Thursday, Nov. 13
- Kick-off Time: 7:45 p.m. GMT / 2:45 p.m. ET / 11:45 p.m. PT
- Referee: Ivan Kružliak (SVK)
- VAR: Clay Ruperti (NED)
England vs. Serbia Head-to-Head Record (All Games)
- England: 2 wins
- Serbia: 0 wins
- Draws: 0
- Last meeting: Serbia 0–5 England (Sept. 9, 2025)—World Cup qualifier
Current Form (All Competitions)
How to Watch England vs. Serbia on TV and Live Stream
England Team News
Crystal Palace centre back Marc Guéhi has been ruled out of Serbia’s visit after sustaining a foot injury which prevented him from featuring in Sunday’s goalless draw with Brighton. The commanding defender was expected to withdraw from the squad—an option taken by the Newcastle United pairing of Anthony Gordon and Nick Pope—but Tuchel is optimistic that Guéhi can play some role against Albania this weekend.
Any concerns over Elliot Anderson’s availability were quashed by Tuchel. The German coach claimed that Nottingham Forest’s midfield maestro “feels no pain” and is “a key player” for England.
On the wider point of selection, Tuchel assured reporters that there will be no “experimentation” in this camp even though England have already qualified. This stance suggests that the former Chelsea and Bayern Munich manager will stick with his 4-2-3-1 shape, although there could be a few different faces in the lineup.
Jude Bellingham should surely be restored to the No. 10 position while Manchester City’s in-form Nico O’Reilly could be explored as a solution to England’s persistent left back problem.
England Predicted Lineup vs. Serbia
England predicted lineup vs. Serbia (4-2-3-1): Pickford; James, Konsa, Stones, O’Reilly; Anderson, Rice; Saka, Bellingham, Rashford; Kane.
Serbia Team News
🦾🇷🇸 #ENGSRB #WCQ #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/7f9OVBeeDu
— Fudbalski savez Srbije | FA of Serbia (@FSSrbije) November 12, 2025
Serbia had a very clear—if flawed—identity under Stojković. Rarely did they stray from a back three with two strikers, drawing upon the superior technical quality of their midfielders but at the cost of a cohesive unit.
Paunović only once deviated from a back four at Real Oviedo this season—when he deployed rearguard action with a line of five to try and hold Real Madrid at bay. It didn’t work.
The new manager’s adaptation hasn’t been aided by a raft of key absentees. Captain Aleksandar Mitrović didn’t join up with the squad while both Milinković-Savić brothers, Sergej and Vanja, are also missing.
Serbia Predicted Lineup vs. England
Serbia Predicted Lineup vs. England (3-5-2): Petrović; Veljković, Milenković, Pavlović; Zivković, Lukić, Gudelj, Samardzić, Kostić; Jović, Vlahović.
England vs. Serbia Score Prediction
Paunović said that his first job is to instil “the belief that we can get a result against England that will leave us with a chance of having a playoff against Latvia” in his players. Whether Serbia’s manager believes that is debatable. Not many do.
For all the hand-wringing about the vibrancy and fluency of Tuchel’s England, they have proven to be effective in this qualification campaign. The biggest battle the Three Lions will likely face on Thursday will be getting the Wembley crowd excited.
Prediction: England 3–0 Serbia
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as England vs. Serbia—2026 World Cup Qualifier: Preview, Predictions and Lineups.
