Lee Carsley was proud of the way England took control of their Nations League destiny and praised “great example” Harry Kane after surprisingly dropping the skipper for the must-win match in Greece.
The interim boss’ bold selection backfired in the reverse fixture at Wembley, where the visitors’ historic 2-1 win helped put them in control of Group B2 heading into Thursday’s Olympic Stadium encounter.
Greece knew they would seal automatic promotion to the Nations League top tier with a match to spare if they avoided defeat, in the process consigning England to the play-offs in Thomas Tuchel’s first camp.
Carsley once again raised eyebrows with his selection as he named Kane on the bench, but replacement Ollie Watkins scored early into a win wrapped up by a Odysseas Vlachodimos own goal and Curtis Jones’ beautiful flick.
The 3-0 victory takes England ahead of Greece thanks to superior head-to-head record, meaning victory against the Republic of Ireland at Wembley in Carsley’s final match will see them promoted.
“I think it was important,” the interim boss said of the win. “We spoke yesterday about matching their energy and enthusiasm.
“We knew it was going to be a difficult game. We saw that at Wembley, so it was important, like I spoke about, to attack and to try and be as creative as we could.
“The most pleasing thing about tonight was the amount of control that we played with. The shape of the team was really good. We had a lot of possession, created a lot of chances.
First game. First goal. First win.@curtisjr_10 is your England Player of the Match connected by @EE! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/1JgQJFfLHm
— England (@England) November 14, 2024
“It was brilliant for Ollie to get a goal. It’s important that I think if we are going to put these players in a position where we are going to go and win the World Cup then these players need to have as many experiences as they can.
“So, it was no slight on Harry. He’ll start the next game and I think a lot of positives to take from that performance.”
Asked about Kane’s reaction to being named on the bench, Carsley said: “He was absolutely fine. It would be fair to say he wants to play every game, like all top players do.
“I think he understands that it’s important that other players experience that kind of experience that we had tonight.
“He’s a great example to the rest of the players and I expect him to start on Sunday and play well.”
What a shift from all the boys! Massive win to have the group in our hands. Congrats Lewis, Morgan and Curtis on your debuts 🙌🏴 pic.twitter.com/YVkJcSSGga
— Harry Kane (@HKane) November 14, 2024
Kane will be desperate to make a point against the Republic on Sunday, but the England captain saw the bigger picture after the Athens triumph.
“What a shift from all the boys! Massive win to have the group in our hands,” he posted on X. “Congrats Lewis (Hall), Morgan (Rogers) and Curtis on your debuts.”
It was a solid all-round display on what could have been a tricky night in Greece, where Carsley says he took no personal satisfaction from his decisions to start Watkins and hand Jones his debut paid off.
“No, none at all, to be fair,” the interim boss said. “None at all.
“I see the quality that the players have got. You’re now seeing it in terms of the younger ones, that they’re more than capable with the mentality and the quality that they’ve got to play in stages like tonight.
“I thought a lot of the players, especially the younger ones – well, all of the players, to be fair – played with such quality tonight.
“Think about the two wide players, Anthony (Gordon) and Noni (Madueke), so attacking, so direct. Lewis Hall coming on at half-time, Rico (Lewis). You know, the age of these players.
“There’s a lot, a lot of positives. Curtis was outstanding tonight. I thought he played with quality, played with a matureness that I’ve seen.
“We saw it in the summer, we played him in that deeper role. He’s playing a different role for Liverpool, so he showed that he can adapt and he is intelligent enough to know where the space is.
“I thought Jude (Bellingham) was really good as well tonight. Him, Conor (Gallagher) and Curtis had a really good combination together in terms of the spaces that that we thought that we might be able to find.
“We did during the game which caused Greece problems, so a lot of positives tonight.”
Interim boss Stephen Frail expects Motherwell to appoint a new manager next week and admits their first job will be to lift the players’ confidence after a 3-0 mauling at home to Ross County.A double from Ronan Hale and Connor Randall’s last-minute strike secured an impressive victory for the Staggies at Fir Park.Defeat sees the Steelmen drop into the bottom half of the Premiership tab...
Mark Hughes heaped praise on goalkeeper Gabe Breeze after Carlisle picked up a vital point in the League Two relegation battle with a goalless draw against in-form Colchester at Brunton Park.Breeze made two excellent saves from Lyle Taylor as the Cumbrians ended a four-game losing run and the former Man City boss was astounded by the 21-year-old’s performance.He said: “The game had som...
Chesterfield boss Paul Cook launched a scathing attack on his play-off hopefuls after they surrendered an early lead to lose 3-1 at Sky Bet League Two table-toppers Walsall.The Spireites enjoyed a rapid start when Jamie Grimes’ eighth-minute header put them ahead against a wobbling Walsall side, who were winless in five matches with the chasing pack closing in.However, Bim Pepple and Dylan D...
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has allayed fears of an injury scare to top scorer Erling Haaland ahead of next week’s Champions League trip to Real Madrid.Haaland went down clutching his leg in the latter stages of the champions’ 4-0 Premier League thrashing of Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday and was immediately substituted.Losing the Norwegian would be a major blow to ...
Rotherham manager Steve Evans described Thomas Parsons’ performance as “atrocious” after the referee awarded a stoppage-time penalty from which Reading snatched a 2-1 victory in League One.Reading had led 1-0 at half-time through top scorer Harvey Knibbs but Sam Nombe levelled for Rotherham from a spot-kick in the 57th minute.With the game heading for a draw, Parsons adjudged Mil...
Michael Flynn believes his team can make a charge towards the League Two play-offs places after watching them come from 2-0 down to beat Barrow 3-2 at home.Matty Taylor scored twice before fellow substitute Ashley Hay hit the winner as the Robins continued their perfect home record in 2025.Cheltenham climbed to 13th in the table and sit eight points off seventh-placed Crewe with two games in hand....
Birmingham manager Chris Davies praised Jay Stansfield’s work ethic after he lit up St Andrew’s with the only goal of a 1-0 win to sink play-off chasing Charlton.Stansfield’s 23rd-minute strike stretched City’s lead to nine points ahead of second-placed Wycombe, with Blues boasting a game in hand.Victory was City’s 30th in all competitions as they extended their unbea...
Andoni Iraola refused to get carried away after Bournemouth fans were left dreaming of a potential Champions League adventure following a first league double over south-coast rivals Southampton.Travelling Cherries fans chanted of playing in European football’s premier competition next season after their side soared to fifth spot in the Premier League table thanks to a deserved 3-1 success at...
Norwich head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup praised his side for fighting back to draw 1-1 at Hull after he demanded “I want to see my football team back”.The Norwich boss had some tough words for his team as they trailed 1-0 at half-time to the relegation-threatened side, including for Kellen Fisher – but the player then delivered the assist for Josh Sargent’s equaliser.The Un...
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers says Jota has a chance of starting against Bayern Munich after scoring and impressing in a 3-0 victory over Dundee United.Jota earned the club’s man-of-the-match award after cutting in from the left and curling home from 18 yards to double the lead given to the hosts by another impressive finish from Callum McGregor.The Portuguese winger has now started two gam...
