England Press Conference
Thomas Tuchel is looking towards the future (Image: Getty)
England manager Thomas Tuchel is once again expected to hand James Trafford an opportunity to impress during the upcoming UEFA Nations League matches. It’s the final international break of 2026, with England having got their Nations League campaign off to a strong start earlier this year.
England won three of their four Nations League outings across late September and early October, with the only match they didn’t win coming against Spain. The recently-crowned world champions defeated England 3-2 at Wembley, with Trafford operating between the sticks for that fixture.
Trafford then kept goal for the away match against Czechia a few days later, with the Leeds United ace securing a clean sheet. And according to a report in The Times, Trafford will once again be given a chance to show what he’s made of when international football returns this week.
Tuchel has insisted that Jordan Pickford is still his No.1 goalkeeper, but the German is keen to test the waters and see what Trafford can offer. When asked about the goalkeeper situation, Tuchel said: “No, he is [still No.1] . But nothing has changed. The competition is on there as well. Like for the outfield players. And Traff gets regular starts now, that's what we wanted.
“James Trafford did well. They shared the matches last time. I'm not sure what we will do. There's an opportunity that we maybe do this again. I have to speak with our goalkeeper coach. But the goalkeepers, they are a bit of a unit for themselves, and rightly so."
The ex-Chelsea manager was asked about how Pickford reacted to this, with Tuchel adding: “But when do I have a chance to see another goalkeeper, if not in Nations League? If not in high-pressure matches?
England v Czechia - UEFA Nations League 2026/27 Group A3 MD4
James Trafford is expected to return to England's starting XI (Image: Getty)
“So we had James against Spain, we asked ourselves is this fair for James Trafford to straightaway go against Spain, but I think it's exactly what we need. Because what happens if Jordan Pickford is injured? What happens if he's not available? So it's better to test it.
“Jordan knows about this. We want to use the Nations League for exactly that. But at the moment, nothing has changed. At the moment, he's the number one. And he just feels a bit of competition. Which is good for him.”
England’s November international break kicks off at Wembley against Croatia on Thursday. The World Cup semi-finalists then travel to Spain for a meeting with the reigning champions on Sunday night.