England’s bid to escape League B of the Nations League continues on Thursday night in their first game of the October international break against Greece.
The Gareth Southgate era is firmly behind the Three Lions with Lee Carsley stepping in successfully after the former Middlesbrough defender stood down in the aftermath of the Euro 2024 final defeat to Spain.
Things went well in Carsley’s first two games as interim boss, securing 2-0 triumphs over Finland and the Republic of Ireland, but a handful of injuries mean it could be a different-looking XI to those that featured last month.
Here’s the team England could deploy for their latest Nations League outing.
GK: Jordan Pickford – Nick Pope and Dean Henderson are the two other goalkeepers included in Carsley’s squad, but there’s little reason to believe a shot-stopper other than Pickford will be between the sticks at Wembley.
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold – England fans got a glimpse of what Alexander-Arnold can offer in his natural position during the last international break. His star quality is undoubted and has to be utilised to greater effect than it was under Southgate.
CB: John Stones – There’s been only three starts in all competitions at Manchester City for Stones so far this season but with other experienced options like Harry Maguire sidelined, his presence in the England team is important.
CB: Marc Guehi – Guehi’s performances at Euro 2024 established the Crystal Palace star as an international-level centre-back England can be comfortable using.
LB: Levi Colwill – With Alexander-Arnold likely to bomb forward from the right, Chelsea defender Colwill will likely be more reserved on the opposite flank.
CM: Declan Rice – Only four players in the current squad can boast more England caps than Rice’s 60, which has accumulated at just 25 years of age.
CM: Jude Bellingham – Hasn’t had the extraordinary goalscoring start to the campaign he enjoyed last year but Bellingham’s skill in possession and dynamic dribbling will be more than evident in a deeper role on Thursday.
RW: Bukayo Saka – Saka’s form at the start of 2024/25 has been nothing short of mesmerising, chalking up two goals and seven assists in the Premier League already.
AM: Cole Palmer – Somewhat surprisingly named England’s player of the year for 2023/24, Palmer will hope to make his first appearances under Carsley this month having missed out in September due to injury.
LW: Anthony Gordon – Gordon’s direct style and express pace are weapons that weren’t used at Euro 2024, but he was handed starts against the Republic of Ireland and Finland and is set for a large role again.
ST: Ollie Watkins – Harry Kane is still training on his own but England have an excellent deputy in Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins. The 28-year-old has four goals in 15 international appearances.
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