ENGLAND are set to play in a tiny 8,000-seater stadium when they visit Serbia in September.
Thomas Tuchel’s men had been anticipating a fearsome atmosphere in Belgrade for the crucial World Cup qualifier.
Red Star’s hostile 53,000-capacity Rajko Mitic Stadium was expected to host the clash on September 9.
But the Serbian Football Association appears set to host the Group K fixture away from the capital.
A tiny stadium in the town of Leskovac has been earmarked for the game.
The Dubocica Stadium is located around 170 miles south of Belgrade.
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With a capacity of just 8,136, it is smaller than FIFTEEN grounds in League Two.
The development is understood to have surprised some at the Football Association, per PA.
Belgrade’s Rajko Mitic Stadium hosted big Nations League matches against Spain and Austria over the last year.
The Three Lions began qualifying with routine wins against Albania and Latvia in March.
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England will next be in action away to Andorra on June 7.
They are then due to play Senegal in a friendly on June 10 at Nottingham Forest‘s City Ground.
In a boost to the new England boss, Arsenal’s Ben White has confirmed his self-imposed international exile is over.
White has not played for the Three Lions since leaving the team’s camp at the 2022 World Cup for “personal reasons.”
White, 27, fit again after knee problems, said: “I’m definitely available.
“I spoke to [Tuchel] a few times. He’s such a nice, nice man — very honest. I haven’t been back for too long.
“So it’s just about playing now and hopefully making my way back in.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
