Make no mistake, England’s defeat on Thursday night was nothing less than a Greek tragedy for interim coach Lee Carsley. Just a month ago, the former Everton midfielder was being talked up as the natural successor to Gareth Southgate after back-to-back wins to start his reign. Now, after England were put to the sword by Greece at Wembley, Carsley is at risk of losing credibility if he cannot quickly bounce back against Finland this weekend.
Of course, any team can have a bad night, but it was the manner of the 2-1 defeat in front of England’s own fans, outplayed and outfought by the Herculean Greek underdogs. Ivan Jovanovic’s men proved they are a talented side after claiming their third straight win in the Nations League, but they are also ranked 48th in FIFA’s world rankings. England boasted established stars in top form like Jude Bellingham, Cole Palmer and Bukayo Saka and couldn’t get out of second gear all night.
Greece peppered England’s goal and had two goals disallowed. Jordan Pickford looked all over the place and a new-look defence of Trent Alexander-Arnold, John Stones, Levi Colwill and Rico Lewis was ripped apart at times.
Carsley made four changes from the 2-0 win over Finland last month, but three of those involved bringing in Palmer, Bellingham and Phil Foden. It was arguably the strongest team he has fielded so far, though his tactics were questionable at best. To play with no recognisable striker (such as Ollie Watkins or Dominic Solanke) and instead field Foden and Bellingham as his forward players was a huge gamble that backfired.
Carsley is likely to keep the job until at least next year, with a lack of clear candidates to take over at present. If this is his audition process, the Greece defeat was a stumble, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be selected. He has three more games to play this calendar year to prove his worth, starting with a trip to Helsinki to face a Finland side he knows they can beat.
The first game between the two teams was all about Harry Kane as he notched two goals on his 100th cap for his country, though he is a doubt for Sunday’s game after missing the Greece loss. England missed their captain and talisman on Thursday and he could be the difference if he can recover from an ankle injury he sustained with Bayern Munich last week.
Saka is also unlikely to be involved after going down with a leg injury against Greece and being hauled off just after half time. Jack Grealish, meanwhile, picked up a knock before the Wembley clash and was ruled out but is expected to return for Finland.
This should be a straightforward victory for England and a much-needed confidence boost after their shock defeat. Finland have lost all three of their Nations League games, including a late defeat to the Republic of Ireland on Thursday.
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Finland vs England odds
Odds from BetFair and updated as of 9 p.m. BST Friday.
- Finland win: 9/1 (+900)
- Draw: 4/1 (+400)
- England win: 2/9 (-450)
Venue: Helsinki Olympic Stadium — Helsinki
Time: 5 p.m. BST (12 p.m. ET), Sunday
Form guide (all competitions)
Finland: L-L-L-D-L
England: L-W-W-L-W
Match prediction
Finland 0-3 England
There can be no excuse to come away from this one with anything but three points. Finland are ranked 64th in the world and cannot match England for quality. Now is the time for the Three Lions to show they have the character to fight for Carsley. It’s a real opportunity to see if the players buy into his ideas and can bounce back when things go wrong. Dropping points would be a disaster so England cannot afford to sink in Helsinki.
(Photo of Cole Palmer and Jude Bellingham: Julian Finney / Getty Images)
