Thomas Tuchel has handed an England debut to Elliot Anderson against Andorra, while Marcus Rashford has been recalled to the starting XI.
Forest midfielder Anderson startsRashford also in starting XIWorld Cup qualifier kicks off at 17:00 BSTFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Nottingham Forest midfielder Anderson earnt his first senior England call-up for September's World Cup qualifiers against Andorra and Serbia and will take his place in Tuchel's starting XI at Villa Park.
Barcelona loanee Marcus Rashford is also in the XI and will start out wide alongside Noni Madueke, while Anderson will partner Arsenal duo Declan Rice and Eberechi Eze in midfield.
Dan Burn and Marc Guehi are the two centre-backs, while Reece James and Myles Lewis-Skelly are handed the nod at full-back. Captain and all-time top goalscorer Harry Kane starts as striker.
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Anderson earnt his first call-up following a stand-out first season at the City Ground after a £35 million ($47m) move from Newcastle United in 2024. The 22-year-old shone for Lee Carsley's England Under-21s as they won the European Championship for the second consecutive time this summer and has now earnt his promotion to the senior side, with a full debut set to arrive sooner than anticipated.
Rashford, meanwhile, has made a slow start to life in Barcelona but saw a recall to the international fold by Tuchel. The 27-year-old has an important year ahead of him as he aims to reach the final World Cup squad, having not been selected for Euro 2024.
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Anderson had the opportunity to play for Scotland due to heritage on his father's side, in fact representing the Tartan Army at all youth levels from U16 through to U21. He was called up to Steve Clarke's senior squad in 2023 but pulled out before making his debut, soon switching his allegiance to England and making his U21 debut a year later. Now, he is set to pull on the Three Lions shirt for the senior side for the first time.
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Tuchel evidently is looking to use his whole squad across the international break and has named a side which gives an opportunity for further experience to rising stars within the set-up including Anderson and Lewis-Skelly. With several big names not within the squad due to injury, this international break could prove a great opportunity for many to stake their claim to being on the plane to the USA, Canada & Mexico next summer.