England v Greece Nations League: Four inexperienced players ‘auditioning’ for Thomas Tuchel
A series of senior exits have affected England interim boss Lee Carsley’s plans for the final two games in charge this week.
Experienced internationals Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish – plus Cole Palmer, Leigh Vi Colwell, Aaron Ramsdale and late substitute Jarrad Branthwaite – are among the nine players to withdraw from the game, many of them through injury.
Captain Harry Kane Questioned whether the fact it was the third international break of a busy season was being “taken advantage of a bit” and said he was unhappy about it Number of missing players.
“If I’m completely honest, I really don’t like it. I think the England team is more important than anything, any club situation,” he told ITV Sport.
Some reports mention clubs exerting pressure on the number of withdrawals, including Manchester City coach Guardiola criticizes Grealish was selected for the Nations League games against Greece and Ireland for the first time.
For players and fans alike, the two games represent a strange period of instability before new head coach Thomas Tuchel takes over in January.
Carsley’s call-ups include Aston Villa’s 22-year-old Morgan Rogers and Liverpool’s 21-year-old Jarrell Quasa, bringing the average age of the squad down to just over 25. The team also has six uncapped players.
Under former head coach Gareth Southgate, England’s average age at Euro 2024 is 26.1 years old, already the third youngest player at this tournament, behind Turkey (25.8) and Czech Republic (25.3 years).
Carsley said he would put his “own stamp” on the England squad during his time as interim manager and come out “fresh and new” with each meeting. He did.
He has once again turned to the ‘England Way’ players he was familiar with as Under-21 manager and was part of the squad that beat Spain 1-0 in the Euro 2023 final even with the withdrawal of Palmer and Colwell Eight players remain.
However, this is one of the most inexperienced teams in recent history, with Harry Kane (101 games) and Kyle Walker (91) accounting for almost half of the entire squad’s 400 games. England’s high-profile exits totaled 240 games.
England need to win both games to earn automatic promotion back to the top flight of the Nations League and ensure Tuchel’s first game is not a Nations League play-off but what he calls a World Cup qualifier.
Tuchel will not travel to Greece and Carsley said the German had no influence on the squad selection for the game and “he has a lot of respect” for the job Carsley and his staff are doing.
Ultimately, Carsley’s lasting impact could develop the next generation of England stars sooner than expected.
It all makes for an interesting “audition” for some of the players on this team.
