England have booked their place at the 2026 World Cup finals after a comprehensive 5-0 victory over Latvia in Riga. Thomas Tuchel's side secured top spot in Group K with two qualifiers still to play, maintaining their perfect record in the campaign.
Anthony Gordon opened the scoring in the 26th minute, cutting inside and curling a fine shot into the far corner. Captain Harry Kane then added a quickfire double before half-time, first with a powerful low drive from the edge of the box and then from the penalty spot after a VAR check for a foul on him at a corner. Kane's brace took his England tally to 76 goals.
The second half saw further goals as a Maksims Tonisevs own goal and a strike from substitute Eberechi Eze completed the scoring. England also recorded their sixth consecutive clean sheet in qualifying, with Jordan Pickford extending his national record for successive shutouts to nine games.
The match was notable for the interaction between the travelling England fans and Tuchel, who had criticised the Wembley crowd for being too quiet in the previous friendly against Wales. Supporters responded with chants including 'Thomas Tuchel, we'll sing when we want' and 'Are we loud enough for you?' during the first half.
Tuchel made one surprise change to his lineup, resting Marc Guéhi and starting Ezri Konsa alongside John Stones in central defence. Myles Lewis-Skelly returned at left-back. Latvia, ranked 137th in the world, offered little threat and rarely tested the England defence.
