Maybe everything we thought we knew about Lee Carsley was wrong.
When Carsley was put in interim charge of England in August he said that he saw himself as a “safe pair of hands”. During his first international camp in September he twice repeated those words, and it felt like his great strength would be offering calm continuity during a transitional time.
But Carsley is not a safe pair of hands. He is a gambler. When England played Greece at Wembley in October he gambled with an experimental strikerless team. England — and Carsley — lost big. It was the result that may still define him. But Carsley never apologised for experimenting; he never resiled from the calls he made that day.
And when England came here to Athens, Carsley decided to follow up his first loss with an even riskier bet for an even bigger stake. Carsley would either win it all back or lose everything. If the cards fell the wrong way at the Olympic Stadium then the whole Carsley mini-era would be written off as a farce, and Carsley himself as a man so out of his depth, trying so hard to innovate, that he forgot what he was actually meant to be doing.
Because Carsley was gambling with more than just his own reputation when he picked his team for Athens. He was gambling with Harry Kane’s status, too.
Carsley took one of the bravest selection decisions made by any England manager in living memory when he decided to bench Kane for Thursday night’s game. Kane is more than just the England captain. More than just the all-time record goalscorer. More than just the best and most consistent player over the last seven or eight years. Kane is synonymous with this England era. He is almost bigger than the team itself.
And Carsley decided to do without him for this, a must-win-by-two-clear-goals game, away from home, against a team who had turned England over only last month. It looked like a match tailor-made for Kane to start, set the tempo, hold onto the ball, try to find a route to goal, then try to find another.
It was even braver given all of England’s other experienced attacking players — Jack Grealish, Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka — were not here in Greece to be chosen. Kane himself had spoken about it this week. With Anthony Gordon and Noni Madueke out wide, the pull of playing Kane felt gravitational. And yet Carsley ignored it and went for the mobility and speed of Ollie Watkins instead.
It is no secret that Kane wants to play every game. Gareth Southgate used to joke about it when he was brave enough to bench Kane for qualifiers against Andorra and San Marino. Carsley said on Thursday night that Kane was “absolutely fine” with his demotion to the bench. But multiple sources familiar with the situation, and granted anonymity to protect relationships, have told The Athletic that he was unhappy with the decision.
Kyle Walker, standing in as captain for the night, did not sound thrilled with the choice in his pre-match TV interview. “Obviously, you turn up and you expect ‘H’ to be playing,” he told ITV. “But the manager’s made a decision, and we have to stick by that.”
It was slightly surreal to see Kane warming up with the rest of the substitutes before kick-off, then not part of the line of players on the pitch singing the national anthem. Kane’s role has slightly changed this year, with Southgate never afraid to take him off at the Euros. He was not there for the climax of many of England’s knockout games in Germany. But not having him there from the start feels different.
It did not take Watkins long to make the case for himself as he put England ahead after just seven minutes. In truth it was the type of goal, finding space and turning in a crowded box, of which Kane has scored dozens over the years. And when Watkins had the opportunity to score a goal that only he could score, racing onto Rico Lewis’ pass at the end of the first half, he lost control of the ball.
This was not Watkins at his electric best, and when he was replaced by Kane in the second half it felt like the gamble would fail. Greece were on top, England could not keep hold of the ball and 1-1 felt likelier than 2-0. But the substitutions changed the flow of the game and two late goals gave England more than they needed to return to the top of the group.
Kane was first over to the travelling away fans in the corner of the stadium.
He will start against the Republic of Ireland at Wembley on Sunday. Carsley said that Kane understood the importance of other players — like Watkins — sharing these big-game experiences. And maybe Thomas Tuchel will benefit in the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026 from the fact Watkins has started a game like this. He will likely benefit, too, from the fact England can avoid a Nations League play-off in March if they win on Sunday.
But Tuchel will eventually have to wrestle with the Kane question, too. This was a question Southgate tried not to confront, continuing to start Kane at the Euros even when the evidence in front of our eyes pointed to Watkins. It is no secret to the England players, either, with many of them well aware Kane has not played well for England for a while.
It would have been far easier, given everything, for Carsley to take the Southgate approach: Kane from the start, Watkins later on. Especially here in Athens, under pressure, without so many key players, and with his last big gamble having failed.
But instead Carsley took the opposite approach, betting his own reputation on a policy no one expected. It worked, and Carsley won. We will learn in 2025 whether Tuchel can be as brave as that, too.
(Top photo: Michael Regan – The FA/The FA via Getty Images)
