Gareth Southgate said he is ready to try new things when powerhouses Germany and Brazil come to Wembley later this month.
The England manager named a youthful 25-man squad for the mouth-watering double-header, with first time call-ups for Joe Gomez, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Tammy Abraham.
He has also brought Manchester United wing-back Ashley Young back into the fold after a four-year hiatus.
And as Southgate continues to plan for Russia 2018, he is prepared to experiment against the top two sides in the world.
He said: “We always wanted to look at the team and how it might evolve, and these two matches give us an opportunity to look at new players and a different way of playing.
“These are opportunities to test ourselves. We could try things against lesser opposition and it could go well, but we wouldn’t really know where we stand.
“With the two games we’ve got, it will be a really good barometer of the level of performance [required]. They will be a really good benchmark.”
“We qualified with an excellent record. We want to improve our performances. These matches will excite the public, they will excite the players, and I think we will have two really good crowds at Wembley.”
Alongside the three new faces are Tottenham midfielder Harry Winks and Leicester defender Harry Maguire, who both made their debuts against Lithuania last time out, while a further eight players are aged 24 or under.
Southgate added: “The beauty of the position I’m in is that I know all the young players in the system.
“These are lads who, right through the age groups, have been recognised as being our best players. They are all playing well with their clubs and making an impact.
“It’s a great opportunity to see if they can fit into the senior team and they’ve got the chance to stay there if they do well.”
He continued: “We’ve had guys who have done well for us in qualifying and the door isn’t closed to any of them. This is an opportunity to look at different players.
“In one or two positions we are looking at a slightly different profile of player.
“I’ve stressed to all the players that this is a chance for us to experiment, to look at new things.
“We will monitor all of them closely over the next few months and if they are performing to a high level, which is what we want them to be, then there’s no reason why they can’t be in the squad in March.
“We’re excited about the young players we have brought in and also by what’s happened with our U17s in the last month.
“We know there are good young players coming through and we want to give them an opportunity.”
Tickets for both games are on sale now, so click here for more details on the Germany game and click here for the Brazil fixture.
