England v Serbia live: Result as Saka and Eze score in World Cup 2026 qualifying victory

Even before their players set off at the start of this week, some of the Premier League’s best managers already noticed the difference. The anticipation. The trepidation. The superstition of stopping themselves even dreaming it. “Just imagine…”

This is not a typical international window. When many players usually depart for such breaks in the modern game, there’s a sense of going through the motions; from one match to the next. Not this time.

Many are going to make history, to try and achieve a unique feat that brings rare universal feelings in football. To qualify for the greatest show of all, the World Cup.

England earned yet another win and clean sheet in their World Cup qualifying campaign after seeing off Serbia 2-0 at Wembley Stadium.

Bukayo Saka steered home a well-controlled volley in the first half before Eberechi Eze came off the bench to wrap up the win with a wonderful curling effort into the top corner.

England were not at their free-flowing best and toiled at times in the pouring rain, but manager Thomas Tuchel can be satisfied with another three points before they head to Albania for their final qualifying game.

Here is how the players rated:

World Cup qualifying is hurtling towards a conclusion with some of the final places ahead of the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico up for grabs over the next two weeks.

So far, 28 teams have booked their places in what has already been a historic campaign for three first-time qualifiers, with Jordan, Uzbekistan and the Cape Verde islands all through to the 48-team finals.

Thomas Tuchel’s England are the only European team to have qualified so far – courtesy of drubbings of Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra – but the other 11 group winners will be gradually confirmed in the coming days as the first round of qualifying finally concludes.

Bukayo Saka’s sublime cushioned volley set England on course for a 2-0 victory against Serbia as their unblemished World Cup qualification campaign continued.

Having sealed their place in North America with two matches to spare, Thomas Tuchel’s side secured a seventh Group K win without conceding a goal as next summer’s tournament edges closer.

Saka answered the England manager’s plea to score more goals with a fine first-half volley that took his international tally to 14 and substitute Eberechi Eze brilliantly completed Thursday’s comfortable triumph.

Tuchel’s side did not reach the heights of September’s 5-0 battering of Serbia in Belgrade but few put a foot wrong as the coach’s system takes precedence over star names as he seeks to build a “brotherhood”.

Thomas Tuchel has confirmed Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers are in a direct “competition” for a place in his England team.

Bellingham has returned to Tuchel’s squad for the final international camp of the year, with Rogers shining in the No 10 position as England secured qualification for the World Cup with two games to spare.

Ahead of facing Serbia at Thursday, Tuchel said that while Bellingham and Rogers can play together, it was “not the moment” to change England’s formation to get both players into the team.

An interview with Alex Scott, who could feature for the Three Lions on Sunday...

Alex Scott made his Guernsey FC debut as a second-half substitute, with an adult shirt flapping around his 16-year-old frame like a bedsheet. The opposition’s central midfielder, who had tattoos up to his neck and a glint in his eye as the teenager ran on to the pitch, welcomed him to non-league with a shove. “This guy could smell blood,” remembers Guernsey manager Tony Vance. But before he could put the boot in, Scott had swivelled and taken the ball somewhere else.

This was Scott’s gift, to receive it in tight spaces with ease and make opponents look foolish. Most players of his age and talent were in academies playing on green carpets at high-tech training centres, while Scott was learning to survive in the Isthmian League South East, the eighth tier of English men’s football, where midfield was essentially an escape room of sharp elbows and metal studs.

Even before their players set off at the start of this week, some of the Premier League’s best managers already noticed the difference. The anticipation. The trepidation. The superstition of stopping themselves even dreaming it. “Just imagine…”

This is not a typical international window. When many players usually depart for such breaks in the modern game, there’s a sense of going through the motions; from one match to the next. Not this time.

Many are going to make history, to try and achieve a unique feat that brings rare universal feelings in football. To qualify for the greatest show of all, the World Cup.

World Cup qualifying is hurtling towards a conclusion with some of the final places ahead of the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico up for grabs over the next two weeks.

So far, 28 teams have booked their places in what has already been a historic campaign for three first-time qualifiers, with Jordan, Uzbekistan and the Cape Verde islands all through to the 48-team finals.

Thomas Tuchel’s England are the only European team to have qualified so far – courtesy of drubbings of Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra – but the other 11 group winners will be gradually confirmed in the coming days as the first round of qualifying finally concludes.

England’s next match comes on Sunday, when they face Albania in Tirana. That one kicks off at 5pm GMT.