England faced Senegal in an international friendly at Nottingham Forest's City Ground on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, with kickoff at 7:45 PM BST. This match served as England's final game of the 2024/2025 season.
The Three Lions entered the match with a perfect record under their new head coach, Thomas Tuchel, who took over on New Year's Day. Tuchel has secured three victories in World Cup qualifying, placing England at the top of their group. However, their recent 1-0 victory over Andorra was unconvincing, with England struggling to break down their opponent's defense. Harry Kane scored the only goal in the second half. Tuchel aimed for a more polished performance against Senegal.
Senegal, considered one of the strongest teams in Africa, are unbeaten in their World Cup qualifying group and are among the favorites for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations. While the friendly match was primarily about pride for England, Tuchel wanted to see improvement and experimentation before the summer break.
Bukayo Saka was set to make his first start under Tuchel in this match. He had missed the last two international camps due to injury and was also absent for the Andorra game due to a muscle strain. Saka expressed his excitement to play for England, stating he was managed well during the week after a slight strain at the end of the season.
Several changes were expected in England's lineup following the Andorra game. Dean Henderson or James Trafford were in contention to start in goal, and Myles Lewis-Skelly was expected to join the defense. Declan Rice was likely to start in midfield after playing only the final minutes against Andorra. Morgan Gibbs-White was also in line to play, particularly special as the match was held at his club ground. Tuchel faced a decision on who would start in attack, as Cole Palmer's place was potentially under threat after struggling against Andorra.
Wembley Stadium was unavailable due to hosting seven concerts in the next month, followed by another 19 concerts and a boxing match between Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois. The last time the City Ground hosted England's first team was in March 1909, where they won 2-0 against Wales. Tuchel expressed his enthusiasm for playing at a traditional English stadium and facing a strong African team in a city with a rich football heritage.
The match was broadcast live on ITV1 in England, and available for streaming via the ITVX app. Mark Pougatch presented the coverage, with Roy Keane and Ian Wright as pundits.
Historically, this was only the second meeting between England and Senegal. England won the first encounter 3-0 in the 2022 World Cup Round of 16. However, with England in an experimental phase and Senegal in good form, a more balanced contest was anticipated.
