Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer

Image source, Getty Images

Alex: If everyone was fit and the World Cup started next week, who would your starting XI be?

Hi, Alex. Please don’t ask me that question…but seeing as you have.

Pickford; James, Stones, Guehi, Lewis- Skelly; Rice, Anderson, Bellingham; Saka, Kane, Foden. *Dons tin hat.

Craig Nelson
BBC Sport reporter

"If not Harry Kane, then who else?"

This is a question we will return to later.

In the meantime, feel free to have your say by using the Get Involved button and we will publish a cross-section.

Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer

Image source, Getty Images

Ross: If Kane and Watkins are both out injured, who should play up front for England? Do we have options at centre forward?

Morning, Ross. You’ve just asked the very big question there. The cupboard is extremely bare – and let’s face it there is still no-one to touch Harry Kane.

I think options are limited. Usual suspects come to mind, such as Tottenham’s Dominic Solanke and Chelsea’s Liam Delap, but both are suffering with injuries.

Ivan Toney made a brief return to the England squad at the end of last season, when he was summoned from Saudi Arabia, only to be given a brief appearance as a substitute in the friendly against Senegal. He has not returned since, so I doubt it will be him.

I would have liked to have seen Delap get a run at Chelsea but my answer is – just hope Kane (in particular) and Watkins are not injured at the same time.

Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer

Image source, Getty Images

Tim: Hi Phil. Do you think players like Tino Livramento and Djed Spence have a genuine case to be the first choice for the 2026 World Cup?

Morning, Tim. I think they both have a case but my view is that (and a lot can happen between now and the World Cup so this is only an on-the-day opinion) they have a great chance to be in the squad, but not necessarily as starters.

Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer

Image source, Getty Images

Simon: Do you think England and Tuchel are getting the balance right between playing for results now, and planning for the World Cup next year? Will there be room for others to force their way in or will he stick as much as possible to a settled team?

Hi, Simon. Well Thomas Tuchel has had to get results now to qualify for the World Cup, which England hope will be secured with victory against Latvia here in Riga tonight, so he is getting that right.

If England win, the next two qualifiers against Serbia and Albania are effectively dead rubbers, so it will be interesting to see what Tuchel does there as he can maybe try a few things.

Matthew Upson
Former England defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, Getty Images

The result is the by-product of the performance so if the performance is good, you can almost not worry about the result because it should take care of itself.

Sometimes it doesn't, but, on the whole, if you perform well against these teams then the result takes care of itself.

It's all about the tempo in terms of breaking this team down. It's going to be one of those really low blocks, loads of possession.

We've seen England play these matches loads in the past couple of years and it might not be the most entertaining, but it can be quite challenging for a team.

Getting that right will be Tuchel's main focus.

Craig Nelson
BBC Sport reporter

Hopefully, the majority of England fans behave themselves in Riga and cheer the Three Lions on to the three points they need to secure their place at the 2026 World Cup finals in Mexico, Canada and the United States.

That is what is at stake here.

Former England defender Matthew Upson believes that if they produce another performance on a par with last month's 5-0 win in Serbia then the result will take care of itself...

Four England fans have been arrested in Riga before Tuesday's match with Latvia, the UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) has confirmed.

Two of the men were arrested on Sunday after damaging planters in the street, they have since been released and issued with fines.

Additionally, two men were arrested last night after they were caught urinating in public. They have since been released pending further enquiries.

A total of 2,586 England fans will fill the away end at the Daugavas Stadiona in Riga tonight, in what will be the Three Lions' first ever match in the country.

Superintendent Gareth Parkin, who is leading the UKFPU delegation in Riga, said: “The fans out here in Latvia are representing our country, so it’s really disappointing to see that four fans have been arrested.

“This type of behaviour is not acceptable in the UK, nor is it acceptable here in Latvia, and I hope that these arrests will act as a warning to other fans out here in Riga.”

We have some more to come from that England news conference, which also featured insights from in-form goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.

But just a reminder that BBC Sport's chief football writer Phil McNulty is joining us this morning to answer your World Cup questions.

They can be on any topic, not just England.

Use the Get Involved button to pose your question and make sure they are marked for Phil's attention.

Thanks.

England

Image source, Getty Images

The England manager's most pointed remarks were reserved for a player he did pick in his squad - Marcus Rashford.

The Manchester United forward scored in the 5-0 win in Serbia and is starting to show a real return to form during the early part of his loan spell at Barcelona.

Thomas Tuchel urged Rashford to build on his revival and take his chance with England: "I think the limit for him is very, very high. Maybe higher than for others.

"He has the potential - but potential is a dangerous word with high-level sports. You have to reach your personal best on a regular basis - that is what is demanded on this kind of level, and that is the challenge for him.

"He can be one of the best in the world because the quality I see in training, the finishing with both legs and with the head.

"He is explosive, he is fast, he is strong in the air, so where are the limits? There are no limits - but the numbers don't reach the potential, it is as easy as that.

"I think he still has to make these decisions. He is still young enough to make these decisions, because otherwise he might be disappointed in 10 years with what he could have been and what he may have done."

Image source, Getty Images

Thomas Tuchel also opened the door for players not in the squad, such as Phil Foden, Jude Bellingham, Adam Wharton and Jack Grealish, and explained how he hopes they will be feeling: "The hunger to come back. The door is always open. We will always have trouble choosing.

"For a football nation like England we have a pool of talented players and we have to make a selection. So the ones in camp should feel first of all privileged, but they should also feel the hunger to keep the shirt.

"The ones who are not with us should also have the hunger to be with us when the next opportunity is and this is always through behaviour, through performance. The door is always open."

Matthew Upson
Former England defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, Getty Images

It's a nice situation to have.

You know that at the end of the game if you put in a good performance and get a result [you qualify], a lot of the questions put to Thomas Tuchel yesterday were around that and how you prepare for that and if you do anything different, but I think it will be very much business as usual in how he sets his team up.

A great opportunity for the players to then go into two further matches with qualification already in the bag.

England

Image source, Getty Images

More from England manager Thomas Tuchel on team selection: "I don't know which team I will pick, I have not decided yet. All of the players deserve [to be in the team]. The spirit and the momentum is clearly there. The players are fully focused, they trained with a lot of quality, you can sense it. Everyone has made an impact and made themselves available.

"I don't think we can go too wrong with the choices. But the focus is building a strong team, playing a team that's used to playing with each other to put in a strong performance to win an away game in a World Cup qualifier."

England

Image source, Getty Images

Thomas Tuchel chose not to start Harry Kane in Thursday's friendly win over Wales, but the plan backfired somewhat after his replacement, Ollie Watkins, picked up an injury.

There were also concerns that Kane might not be fit enough to start against Latvia, but the England boss said: "Harry [Kane] can play, he is fit. We did the right thing. I don't see why he should not be able to play 90 minutes. I don't see any obstacles there.

"Ollie [Watkins] left camp unfortunately. It was too painful, he couldn't train. He is in treatment with his club and is trying to prepare for the weekend."

Craig Nelson
BBC Sport reporter

It's an interesting point Thomas Tuchel makes - would winning in Latvia help or hinder England's World Cup preparations?

Obviously qualifying for the tournament with two qualifiers still to play would be a massive boost and take the pressure off.

But would the lack of meaningful games stall the momentum the Three Lions have been building?

One obvious bonus would be the opportunity for Tuchel to try out other players in key positions and give those assured of a place in the World Cup squad, such as captain Harry Kane, a rest.

England

England manager Thomas Tuchel on how qualifying early could impact England: "This will be a long break [for meaningful games, if England beat Latvia]. It is what it is. My thoughts are not about November now because it will change a lot if we can fix qualification or not.

"I expect a performance that makes us deserved winners. I know it's never guaranteed to win football matches. Being unlucky is a big part of the game. We expect a top performance. Full focus on tomorrow."

England

Image source, Getty Images

Things seem to have clicked for England under manager Thomas Tuchel.

There were plenty of questions asked heading into the last international break following a string of below-par performances.

But Tuchel never wavered, claiming he had seen a growing spirit in the camp.

Everything came together, just as he predicted, in that 5-0 win in Serbia, and they followed that up with a 3-0 victory over Wales in a friendly at Wembley on Thursday.

Here is the Three Lions boss on how his team are progressing: "It's a pleasure to coach, a pleasure to watch at the moment. The effort against the ball against Wales was outstanding, especially the first half - they couldn't escape their own half.

"We are setting the standards and the team are setting the standards. They are hungry - they show their hunger.

"So we are getting there. There is always room for improvement, but it looks good at the moment."

Craig Nelson
BBC Sport reporter

Right, I hope you have been paying attention to all that, there will be a test at the end of this live page [just kidding].

We will have more later on how qualification is panning out in the other European groups, but let's return to England for the time being.

The squad flew out to Latvia on Monday.

Manager Thomas Tuchel and goalkeeper Jordan Pickford held a news conference yesterday to discuss tonight's match in Riga.

Let's have a look at what they had to say...

Europe is actually the only qualifying region with it's own play-off system.

The best-performing countries that fail to qualify automatically from the remaining regions will compete in an inter-confederation 'Play-Off Tournament', which will be held in Mexico in March.

Eight teams will take part in the tournament, with two progressing to the World Cup finals.

Here is how the World Cup places are determined via region:

• Asia: Eight direct spots + one Play-Off Tournament place
• Africa: Nine direct spots + one Play-Off Tournament place
• Concacaf: Six direct spots + two Play-Off Tournament places
• South America: Six direct spots + one Play-Off Tournament place
• Oceania: One direct spot + one Play-Off Tournament place
• Europe: 16 direct spots (12 group winners and four play-off winners)

NB: The Concacaf region, which includes Mexico, Canada and the United States, was given two places in the Play-off Tournament as host confederation of the World Cup finals

The 12 group runners-up in the European section of qualifying will participate in the play-offs.

They will be joined by the four best-ranked group winners of the 2024-25 Nations League that did not finish in the top two of their European qualifying groups.

The 16 teams who enter the play-offs will be drawn into four play-off paths, with four teams featuring in each.

Play-off matches will consist of single-leg semi-finals followed by single-leg finals, taking place on 26 and 31 March 2026.