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In seven months' Thomas Tuchel will lead out England at the 2026 World Cup in North America, with the goal of bringing it home for the first time in almost 60 years.
The Three Lions polished off their flawless qualification campaign on Sunday night by beating Albania 2-0 in Tirana.
Captain Harry Kane bagged a second-half brace to ensure Tuchel's side finished the group with a perfect record, winning all eight games without conceding a single goal.
The England boss can now turn his attention to preparations for the World Cup, and he has just one more England camp before football's most prestigious tournament.
The former Chelsea manager has some big decisions to make when it comes to selecting a 26-man squad for the venture across the Atlantic, and is certain to have a whole host of sleepless nights before the time comes for him to form the final group.
While Thomas Tuchel has time on his side, Daily Mail's England reporters have put together their own 26-man World Cup squads. Who do they think should be included?
Thomas Tuchel now has seven months to ponder over which players he takes to the World Cup
The England boss will have to form a 26-man squad for the tournament in North America
Oliver Holt's squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Dean Henderson, James Trafford.
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Tino Livramento, John Stones, Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn.
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice, Adam Wharton, Elliot Anderson, Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers, Jordan Henderson.
Forwards: Eberechi Eze, Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Gordon, Noni Madueke, Jack Grealish.
I’d take Myles Lewis-Skelly ahead of Djed Spence at left full-back. In fact, I’d start him in the first XI. The main reason is that Lewis-Skelly is the best young player in the country.
He might not be getting the minutes he should at Arsenal at the moment but the upside of that is that he’ll be fresh for the tournament. He’s versatile, too. He can step into midfield.
Spence is a fine player, but character counts when you’re taking a squad away for six or seven weeks, and the disrespect he showed to Thomas Frank after the Spurs-Chelsea game recently was a red flag.
Another full-back choice. You have to find a way to get Trent Alexander-Arnold on the plane. He has too much talent and too much to offer creatively to ignore him.
We all know Tuchel will start with Reece James at right back if he’s fit, so take Trent as the back-up and include Tino Livramento as one of the left-back slots.
I’m taking Jack Grealish instead of Jarrod Bowen. It’s harsh. I’ve got a lot of admiration for Bowen.
But there will come a time at the World Cup when England are facing adversity, when they might be facing elimination, when they need a spark. Grealish is the kind of player who’ll provide it.
Daoily Mail Sport's Oliver Holt would start Myles Lewis-Skelly if he was in charge
Jack Grealish should also be in the final 26-man group over West Ham's Jarrod Bowen
Ian Ladyman's squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Dean Henderson, Nick Pope.
Defenders: Reece James, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Marc Guehi, John Stones, Ezri Konsa, Harry Maguire, Tino Livramento, Nico O’Reilly.
Midfielders: Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson, Adam Wharton, Jude Bellingham, Morgan Rogers, Jordan Henderson.
Forwards: Harry Kane, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Cole Palmer, Jarrod Bowen, Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze, Marcus Rashford, Ollie Watkins.
Trent Alexander-Arnold is a unique footballer who brings a level of sophistication and quality to this squad that Thomas Tuchel would be foolish to ignore.
The England manager has built England’s qualification on unity and togetherness and, to a degree, predictability.
Alexander-Arnold is a little different from that. He is a little unpredictable at times, and that’s exactly why he should go to America with his country. Reece James is England’s best right-back and should start.
But coming off the bench, Alexander-Arnold would be a gift. Fabulous set pieces, great passing range and tournament experience, the Real Madrid player would get in any squad at next summer’s World Cup, so why on earth should he not be in ours?
Thomas Tuchel would be foolish to ignore Trent Alexander-Arnold for the World Cup
Taking a player like his old Liverpool team-mate Jarell Quansah ahead of him would frankly be ridiculous.
Tuchel loves Dan Burn and he will be on the plane. Tuchel loves him for his attitude, his positivity and his ability to be a threat at the set pieces that he thinks will be so important. None of this gets the Newcastle player in my squad.
Manchester United’s Harry Maguire would be a better reserve central defender. He has more international experience, uses the ball better and has a habit of providing late on in games for his club – at both ends of the field.
Tuchel has set the culture with England now and we would hope that it’s embedded. I don’t really see why we need Newcastle’s likeable big defender just to make sure things tick along in that regard. With Jordan Henderson surprising me for Brentford, he squeezes into this big squad, and he can be the glue off the pitch that Tuchel clearly feels he needs.
At the risk of this becoming all about Newcastle, Anthony Gordon wouldn’t get in my squad if it was picked today. His form hasn’t been good enough for quite a long time now.
Until his recent injury, he has been getting in on reputation and that can only go on so long. The quality that Gordon brings is that he is a traditional straight-line winger, a player who can stretch teams with speed and directness, especially on the counter.
But if Tuchel takes Marcus Rashford and Jarrod Bowen – which he will – then he has two players who can provide such service. Both can also play through the middle as alternatives to Harry Kane.
England will need genuine quality next summer. The tournament will require a different level of sophistication than qualifying. England will not win the World Cup on pressure and ball retention alone. We will need our artists. So Cole Palmer goes, Phil Foden goes and… Jack Grealish goes. It’s a squad game and there’s room for them all in mine.
Ian Ladyman would not include any Newcastle players in his final 26-man England squad
Harry Maguire has done enough to get on the theoretical plane over Dan Burn
Craig Hope's squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Dean Henderson, Nick Pope.
Defenders: Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa, John Stones, Dan Burn, Reece James, Lewis Hall, Tino Livramento, Nico O’Reilly.
Midfielders: Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson, Cole Palmer, Jordan Henderson, Morgan Rogers, Eberechi Eze, Phil Foden, Adam Wharton.
Forwards: Harry Kane, Ollie Watkins, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Gordon, Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke, Max Dowman.
My biggest call is leaving Jude Bellingham OUT. His show of petulance in Albania felt like a retrograde step at a time when Thomas Tuchel has moved England forward as a collective.
Can he really risk such unrest during six weeks in North America? There are enough good players to take England far without Bellingham.
But Cole Palmer is in. He still has to prove his fitness, but what he doesn’t have to prove is his big-game mentality.
There are enough good players to take England far without Jude Bellingham in the squad
A wildcard pick that can generate excitement and motivate others is that of teenager Max Dowman
He scored in the final of Euro 2024 and twice in the Club World Cup final last summer, in the stadium where the World Cup final will be played.
Finally, he will be 16 and a half come the summer and, while it will need him to have played more consistently for Arsenal in the second half of the season, a wildcard pick can generate excitement and motivate others. That's why I am including Max Dowman.
The teenager would be an unknown prospect for the opposition from the bench and has the nerve and guile to open up a stubborn defence.
