Tammy Abraham, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Jordan Pickford to make England debuts against Germany

Gareth Southgate will select the most inexperienced England side in 41 years for the visit of world champions Germany to Wembley on Friday (10 November).

Seven squad withdrawals and a handful of long- and short-term fitness doubts means the Three Lions' preparations for the World Cup will begin with an experimental side including three debutants.

Tammy Abraham, who has recently pledged his allegiance to England despite being eligible to play for Nigeria, will line up alongside Ruben Loftus-Cheek and goalkeeper Jordan Pickford in a home side boasting just 101 international caps an and average age of just over 25. Not since playing Wales in 1976 have England fielded a side with fewer caps.

Tottenham Hotspur's Eric Dier will captain the side – the sixth different skipper during Southgate's 12 months at the helm – with Phil Jones the most experienced player, with 23 previous appearances form his country.

The Manchester United defender will be joined by John Stones and Leicester City's Harry Maguire in a back three, with Spurs pair Kieran Trippier and the returning Danny Rose on opposing flanks.

Dier will sit behind West Bromwich Albion's Jake Livermore and Loftus-Cheek, who swapped Chelsea for Crystal Palace in the summer. Abraham, another who left Stamford Bridge in the pre-season after joining Swansea City on a season-long loan, will be partnered in attack by Jamie Vardy.

Southgate is left with just nine substitutes, and with six permitted to be used for an international friendly, it is likely that Liverpool's Joe Gomez and Burnley's Jack Cork will add to the list of new caps from the bench.

The visit of five-time World Cup winners Brazil on Tuesday could see more maiden caps handed out with Southgate set to promote players from the Under-21 squad. Dominic Solanke, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Demarai Gray are among those in line for a call-up, according to The Daily Telegraph.

Since Southgate announced his squad on 2 November, seven players have withdrawn from the back-to-back internationals.

Tottenham trio Dele Alli, Harry Kane and Harry Winks were joined by Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and Manchester City duo Raheem Sterling and Fabian Delph in pulling out at the start of the week. Jack Butland became the latest withdrawal on Thursday after sustaining a broken finger.

Defender Gary Cahill is unavailable having not trained on the eve of the game – after being assessed by Chelsea following the win over United last weekend – while club teammate Danny Drinkwater rejected a call-up, having played just 84 minutes of first-team football this season due to a calf injury.

Nathaniel Clyne, Adam Lallana and Ross Barkley, all of whom have not played this term, as well as Danny Welbeck, Nathaniel Chalobah and Tom Heaton, were unavailable to Southgate due to long-term injury concerns, leaving the England boss with a total of 15 players absent for a key game before the finals in Russia next summer.

Nevertheless, despite several star names being unavailable, tickets for the match are sold out and a record attendance for an England game at the new Wembley – which currently stands at 89,107 for the World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan in October 2008 – could be set.