Arsenal star axed from England squad ahead of Serbia clash

Thomas Tuchel has axed one player from his England squad to face Serbia (Picture: Getty)

Myles Lewis-Skelly will play no part in England’s World Cup qualifier against Serbia tonight after he was cut from Thomas Tuchel’s matchday squad.

The Arsenal star played the full 90 minutes on Saturday as the Three Lions laboured to an uninspiring 2-0 win against Andorra at Villa Park.

England are likely to get a sterner test this evening amid a hostile atmosphere at the imposing Stadion Rajko Mitic.

Lewis-Skelly has featured prominently during the early stages of Tuchel’s tenure but with so many options at left-back, the German has opted to leave the teenager out of his 23-man squad.

Djed Spence, Dan Burn and Tino Livramento are all options for the England boss who will be looking to maintain his side’s 100% start to the qualifying campaign.

Tuchel believes the tough trip to Serbia will ‘bring out the very best’ in his side as the England manager prepares for his most challenging test so far.

The former Chelsea boss has yet to oversee a victory against a side above 65th in FIFA’s world rankings, with Wembley triumphs against Albania and Latvia followed by a pair of lifeless wins over Andorra.

Myles Lewis-Skelly will not feature for England against Serbia (Picture: Getty)

A 3-1 friendly loss at home to 19th-ranked Senegal was sandwiched between England’s wins against the microstate, with a statement result in Serbia having the potential to define the start of his reign.

‘I’m not sure,’ Tuchel said when that was put to him after a storm-delayed arrival in Belgrade. “Let’s see and wait until (Tuesday) how the game plays out. You always have to prepare for everything. We prepare for the best version of Serbia.

‘First of all, we are in a very sportive country and a very emotional country. They have world-class sportsmen in all types of sports.

‘They have amazing talents over the years in football and we will face individual quality, we will face emotions. We have our first away game together in a very emotional and traditional stadium, so I think the occasion, the opponent will bring out the very best in us (on Tuesday). I’m looking forward to it.’

Dan Burn could start at left-back against Serbia for England (Picture: Getty)

England travelled to the Balkans on the back of a 2-0 win in Birmingham against Andorra, where Marc Guehi had complained of a groin issue at half-time.

‘In terms of performance, I have to say not too many (changes),’ Tuchel said as he prepares to break down another low block. ‘Maybe slight adjustments.

‘We had an excellent camp and everyone deserves to play, everyone deserves some minutes. The players are not yet in a rhythm where it’s normal also to play 90 minutes every three days, so we take this into account.

‘Like we’ve said, we do last decisions for changes and for the line-up tonight, maybe (Tuesday) morning. Everyone is available, so it will be narrow decisions, but it’s a good sign. Everyone trained, everyone is OK to start.’

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