England's Starting 11 For 2026 World Cup Was Predicted in 2021

He joined in April 2024, having previously worked at VAVEL as Deputy Editor-in-Chief, where he produced a variety of content, including pieces from press conferences and games. He also won an award for his role as lead editor for the Women's Football section of the online newspaper.

Covering football all across Europe, he has worked at stadiums such as Anfield, Old Trafford, and Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park, as well as having reported at both the 2023 men's and women's Champions League finals in Eindhoven and Istanbul.

He is infatuated with every aspect of football, but likes other sports as well, being an avid coffee-desperate Buffalo Bills supporter from across the pond and a darts' newbie. Sign in to your GiveMeSport account Football never stops, with players coming and going faster than tourists at Gatwick Airport. Predicting where a team will be in a year - let alone five - is nearly impossible. Yet, that’s exactly what FourFourTwo attempted back in 2021 when they forecasted England’s squad for the 2026 World Cup.

At the time, Gareth Southgate’s tenure was in full swing, fresh off England’s heartbreaking loss to Italy in the delayed Euro 2020 final. Kalvin Phillips was a national treasure, the population was clamouring for then-Aston Villa star Jack Grealish to see more minutes, and Cole Palmer had yet to make his professional debut.

The starting line-up Thomas Tuchel is likely to go with in his first game in charge of England against Albania.

Fast-forward to today, and the landscape looks starkly different. England have since endured a World Cup quarter-final exit and, yet another, European Championships final heartbreak. But a flawless 2026 World Cup qualification campaign has seen them book a spot at next summer's international showpiece under the fresh management of Thomas Tuchel. With that in mind, how accurate was FourFourTwo's 2021 prediction of England’s squad five years down the line?

The reasoning FourFourTwo gave for picking Dean Henderson was the fact Jordan Pickford will be 32 years old at the next World Cup. It's fair to give them the benefit of the doubt but, right now, it doesn't look like age is taking its toll on the Sunderland native whatsoever, and it seems almost inevitable the Everton shot-stopper will keep his position. Despite that, Henderson has thrived at Crystal Palace in recent years and will be his understudy.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, easily among the best right-backs in the world these days, was perhaps the easiest defensive prediction for England’s future. Overlooked at times under Southgate, it was hoped that he'd thrive under Tuchel’s bold tactics. That hasn't materialised, though, with the Real Madrid star not included in Tuchel's 26-man squad. Reece James looks set to start on the right of defence.

Ben White, meanwhile, exiled himself from England duty in 2022 after a clash with Steve Holland. He has since returned to the fold, but a season-ending injury sustained towards the end of the 2025/26 campaign means the Poole-born defender has not made the squad. As for Marc Guehi, his standout performances at Euro 2024 and at club level for Manchester City have all but secured his place in the squad for years to come.

The same optimism, however, cannot be extended to Ryan Sessegnon. Once touted as a future star, the former Fulham wonderkid has endured a torrid time with injuries, which has seen him struggle to fulfil his lofty expectations. As a result, the left-back mantle is more likely to be taken up by a generation too young for FourFourTwo to predict, with emerging talent Nico O'Reilly ready to step into the spotlight.

GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Despite featuring 50 times in England's youth teams, Ryan Sessegnon has never earned a senior cap.

On paper, few midfield trios in world football seem better equipped to put an end to England’s 60-year silverware drought than Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, and Phil Foden. Back in 2021, they were touted as the future architects of a new golden generation. Nearly five years on, they’ve lived up to the billing, although the latter was omitted from Tuchel's squad.

There are also question marks about whether Bellingham will start. Tuchel is a big fan of Morgan Rogers, who has thrived at Aston Villa, while Eberechi Eze has also staked his claim with some impressive performances for Arsenal.

England's 20 best players right now have been ranked, including Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka.

Another pressing question is whether a system player will be needed in midfield. Big names don’t always guarantee rounded performances, and one of Tuchel’s predecessor’s biggest challenges was finding someone willing to do the dirty work. In 2021, that role belonged to the out-of-sorts Kalvin Phillips, while Manchester United's Kobbie Mainoo emerged as a reliable force in 2024.

Elliot Anderson of Nottingham Forest looks to be the most likely candidate to hold down the fort in the middle of the park. He's supremely talented, of course, and now Tuchel has a selection headache to sort out ahead of this summer's international showpiece. Rice, though, is one of the few non-negotiable picks for England.

FourFourTwo's predictions had to go downhill at some point, and that sneaky feeling proved correct when they pieced together their front three. Of course, the choice of Bukayo Saka on the right wing was easy, and the Arsenal creator has been one of the first names on the team sheet since he first broke onto the scene as a teenage sensation. As things stand, the 24-year-old has scored 14 goals in 48 Three Lions appearances.

But they couldn't have been more wrong in forecasting a continuation of the rise to prominence that Mason Mount and Mason Greenwood were making in the aftermath of Euro 2020. While Mount made the fatal mistake of agreeing to a big-money move to Manchester United, where he has played a bit-part role amid the club's struggles, Greenwood's off-field troubles have meant any return to the international setup for him would be met with a barrage of protests.

With 26 goals and four assists in 45 matches for Marseille this term, quality isn't an issue. But Greenwood's career took a dramatic turn after his arrest in January 2022 on charges including assault and coercive control. The Old Trafford outfit suspended him, and although the charges were later dropped in February 2023, the club conducted its own internal investigation before letting him go.

That said, Harry Kane also remains one of the best strikers in the world right now, so there's no question the Bayern Munich forward will still lead the line regardless. Not only is he England's all-time top goalscorer with 78 strikes, but he is in the sharpshooting form of his life, having plundered 68 goal contributions (61 goals and seven assists) for his Bundesliga employers across all competitions this season.

All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt - correct as of 09/06/2026