England play host to Greece in the Nations League as both teams look to continue their unbeaten in this top of the table encounter at Wembley.
Lee Carsley’s reign has got off to the perfect start with victories over the Republic of Ireland and Finland during the September internationals. Harry Kane scored twice against the latter on his 100th appearance for the national side but is a doubt for this game after training away from the rest of the squad earlier in the week.
England have also been boosted by the returns of Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer who will be causing the manager to think about how to fit all of them into the line-up.
Elsewhere, Greece have also won both of their Nations League outings, against the same opponents, but have outscored the Three Lions with five goals from those two games. This match represents the biggest test of the Carsley era so far but should England come through it they will be the favourites to win promotion back into League A.
Follow all the Nations League action with our live blog below:
Stones to captain England
John Stones will lead England out as captain for the first time this evening. He wins his 82nd cap and is looking forward to leading the national team.
“It was a great conversation that I was able to have with John last night, to have that responsibility to ask him to captain the team,” Lee Carsley said.
“It’s a brilliant achievement for John. Something that he deserves – the amount of caps he’s got, the experience he’s got, the level of professionalism that he shows within the squad, the example he is to the younger players.
“It was a great conversation to have.”
Mike Jones10 October 2024 18:00
Kane won’t start for England
“Harry’s nursing an injury, a small knock,” confirmed interim England manager Lee Carsley when asked if the Three Lions captain was fit for tonight’s game.
“Something that we won’t take a chance with.”
Asked to clarify whether Kane will be on the bench at Wembley, he said: “We’re not ruling him out yet of the game, but he won’t start the game.
“Hopefully he’ll be in contention then for Sunday (against Finland) but, again, time will tell. It’s not something I think we should be rushing.”
Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:54
Lee Carsley confirms Harry Kane won’t start for England against Greece – ‘We won’t take a chance’
A month on from celebrating his 100th cap with a match-winning brace against Finland, the 31-year-old could miss Thursday’s Wembley return against the Group B2 leaders.
Kane sustained a knock during Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga clash with Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday and has been unable to train with the group despite getting the green light to stay with England.
Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:48
Jack Grealish reveals which England teammate he will never ask to babysit new daughter
The Manchester City player announced the safe arrival of his first child Mila with partner Sasha Ashwood earlier this week.
In an interview with BBC Sport on Wednesday, ahead of England’s match against Greece, Grealish was asked which of his Three Lions teammates would be the best and worst babysitter.
The 29-year-old chose Harry Kane as his preferred favourite, when pressed on his least preferred choice, he chose Bukayo Saka, stating the Arsenal winger might “fall asleep”.
Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:42
England vs Greece prediction
With England in great form and fully revitalised under interim manager Lee Carsley they should be looking forward to a more challenging outing this evening.
Greece are unbeaten in the Nations League so far but will likely be forced to change their style of play against the Three Lions. It may take a while for the first goal to come but England will look to take advantage when it does.
Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:36
Predicted line-ups
Here’s how we see both teams lining up tonight given pre-match information and how we think the manager’s will see the match playing out. Lee Carsley has a job on his hands fitting Cole Palmer, Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham into the team so it seems likely at least one will be on the bench.
I can easily see Palmer or Foden starting on the left side ahead of Anthony Gordon though the Newcastle winger impressed in the previous camp and deserves to keep his spot.
England XI: Pickford; Alexander-Arnold, Stones, Guehi, Colwill; Gomes, Rice; Saka, Bellingham, Gordon; Watkins
Greece XI: Vlachodimos; Rota, Mavropanos, Koulierakis, Tsimikas; Bouchalakis, Mantalos; Chatzigiovannis, Bakasetas, Pelkas; Pavlidis
As for the latest odds, it should come as no surprise that England are the heavy favourites though without Harry Kane up front the match will likely be a closer affair than expected.
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Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:30
Greece early team news
Greece have been dealt a huge blow to their chances of winning as Fotis Ioannidis sustained an injury during Panathinaikos’ recent Greek Super League clash with Olympiacos and has been left out of the squad.
Vangelis Pavlidis should lead the line as a result with the rest of the squad taking up a more familiar shape. Goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos should win his 45th cap in goal.
Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:24
England early team news
Harry Kane did not train with the rest of the squad on Tuesday as he recovers from a thigh injury and the England captain is a doubt for this game. He trained indoors on a specialised programme so may be able to feature at some point though a starting place is unlikely.
Ezri Konsa, Morgan Gibbs-White and Kobbie Mainoo all withdrew from the squad on Monday having picked up respective injuries over the weekend. Having returned to the squad for this camp, Kyle Walker, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden are all in line to start for the Three Lions.
Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:18
How can I watch it?
This Nations League clash will be shown on ITV1 and ITV X with coverage starting at 7pm BST.
If you want to stream major sporting events while you are travelling or watching from abroad you’ll need a VPN. Get the best VPN deals in the UK. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider.
Mike Jones10 October 2024 17:12