Gareth Southgate wants a “ruthless” display on his 50th match in charge as England start the road to next year’s World Cup against minnows San Marino.

Four months on from ending a challenging 2020, another coronavirus-complicated year gets under way with Thursday’s clash against the world’s bottom-ranked side before Group I fixtures against Albania and Poland.

Southgate will be fine-tuning for this summer’s rearranged European Championship during a triple-header that he hopes can provide a solid platform for their bid to reach Qatar next year.

“I think we’ve been that way over the last three or four years, really, we’ve played various different systems at different times.

“With a club, you probably have more continuity, you recruit to a system of play. With international football, you want your best players on the pitch in the positions where they can be most effective.

“I think modern players are very adaptable, they can switch systems very quickly, they can take on concepts very well.

“That’s part of being a top player in the modern day, you see with the clubs they have to adapt very quickly and they will be able to do that us as well.”