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With Ollie Watkins and Ivan Toney now based in Saudi Arabia and both already into their 30s, this looks like the right moment for England to begin refreshing their attacking options ahead of Euro 2028.

Only 45 days after appearing together for England in the World Cup 2026 third-place play-off, Ollie Watkins and Ivan Toney found themselves on the same field again, though in completely different circumstances.

On this occasion, the two forwards were on opposite sides, having traded the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami for Riyadh’s Kingdom Arena, where Watkins marked his Al Hilal debut with a goal in Tuesday’s 3-0 victory over Toney’s Al-Ahli.

The former Aston Villa forward’s move to the Saudi Pro League means none of the three central strikers named in England’s World Cup 2026 squad are now playing in the Premier League, and that should represent a notable point in the development of the Three Lions’ forward line.

While opinions may differ on the value of leaving the Premier League for Saudi Arabia, one fact is beyond dispute: England’s strikers are not getting any younger.

Watkins and Toney are both 30, while Harry Kane turned 33 in July. Kane remains among the finest centre forwards in world football, having scored an extraordinary 73 goals in 65 matches for Bayern Munich and England last season, and he is almost certain to still be his country’s captain by the time Euro 2028 arrives.

Whether Watkins and Toney will still be involved by then is open to question. Both men will be 32 when the European Championship starts and are expected to spend the next two seasons in the Saudi Pro League.

That alone is not automatically a block to international selection, as head coach Thomas Tuchel demonstrated by choosing Toney for the June 2025 international window and then bringing him back for the World Cup. Even so, the German has already used both players only sparingly, and a move to Saudi Arabia is unlikely to alter that.

Watkins has earned only six caps under Tuchel, totalling 177 minutes, and his only starts have come in friendlies against Wales and New Zealand. He played just twice at the World Cup — first against Panama, when England were already 2-0 ahead, and then as a half-time substitute in the third-place play-off against France, with the Three Lions 4-0 up. Toney, meanwhile, has managed only 122 minutes across four matches since Tuchel took charge, although he did start the third-place play-off.

It was striking that neither striker was used when England were chasing a goal in the 0-0 group-stage draw with Ghana, or when the matches against Panama and DR Congo were still finely poised. Toney was introduced only in the closing seconds of the semi-final defeat to Argentina.

All of that points to Tuchel not being fully convinced by either Watkins or Toney, so with both forwards now in their 30s and playing in a league that is, with all due respect, below Premier League level, the time has surely come to explore other options.

The immediate question, of course, is who those alternatives might be. The shortage of English centre forwards has been a major talking point for several years, with Kane the only genuinely world-class option in that role and very limited depth behind him.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Dominic Solanke seem to be the next names in contention, having both been picked for the friendlies against Uruguay and Japan in March. Solanke played in both matches, starting against the South Americans before being replaced in the 56th minute by Calvert-Lewin, who made his only appearance of that window. But neither man took full advantage of the opportunity and both were left out of the World Cup squad.

By the time Euro 2028 comes around, Solanke and Calvert-Lewin will be 30 and 31 respectively, yet between them they have only 17 senior caps, which hardly makes them established international strikers. On top of that, although Calvert-Lewin enjoyed a strong campaign with Leeds United last season, Solanke is currently unable to break into Tottenham Hotspur’s Premier League starting XI.

That is exactly why this feels like the ideal moment for a gradual changing of the guard in England’s attack. None of the players already mentioned appear to be long-term answers, so Tuchel should begin introducing those who could remain part of the set-up for the next decade or longer.

This autumn’s Nations League fixtures may arrive too soon for that process, but after that come the Euro 2028 qualifiers, which begin next March and carry even less pressure than usual for Tuchel’s side. Two tournament places will be set aside for the highest-ranked co-hosts who do not qualify automatically, so even if England stumble, they would only need to finish above two of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

That gives Tuchel ample scope to assess different candidates, while also offering the next wave of strikers the chance to push themselves into his thinking.

Liam Delap is the standout name in that group, having already made a Premier League impact by scoring 12 goals for relegated Ipswich Town in 2024/25. The 23-year-old had a difficult season at Chelsea last term, but should now be Nottingham Forest’s main striker after the club paid a record £50m to sign him last month. If he starts well, an England call-up in November cannot be ruled out.

Further back in the queue is Will Lankshear, who left Tottenham this summer for Championship promotion hopefuls Middlesbrough in a deal that could rise to £20m. The 21-year-old scored 12 goals while on loan at Oxford United during their relegation from the second tier last season and has already found the net seven times in his first seven appearances for Boro.

If Lankshear keeps scoring at that rate, he will surely be a Premier League player by this time next year, whether with Middlesbrough or elsewhere, and that would improve his prospects of an England call-up.

Another player worth monitoring is Aston Villa’s Brian Madjo, who rounded off an impressive display with a goal against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup last month. The striker will not turn 18 until January and is currently sidelined through injury, but he should receive plenty of game time once he is fit again.

If he performs well in the Premier League, he could become a realistic option for Tuchel’s Euro 2028 squad.

Of course, Delap, Lankshear and Madjo must all do their part, but Tuchel also needs to be bold enough to pick them ahead of the safer, more experienced choices he plainly does not fully trust. If he does, it may prove a decision he is grateful for by the time Euro 2028 begins.