It only takes a glance down the squad list announced by Lee Carsley for England’s Nations League games against Greece and Finland to comprehend the wealth of attacking talent at the interim manager’s disposal.
Restored to the group are Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden of Manchester City and Cole Palmer, scorer of four first-half goals for Chelsea against Brighton & Hove Albion last Saturday and the Premier League’s man of the moment.
They join Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka and Anthony Gordon, who all impressed in last month’s victories against the Republic of Ireland and Finland, along with the inexperienced Noni Madueke and Morgan Gibbs-White who were granted cameos in those wins.
Then there is Dominic Solanke, back after a near-seven-year absence, challenging Harry Kane and Ollie Watkins for the No 9 role. So what combination of those players should Carsley thrust together for the games at Wembley and in Helsinki?
Here are the assessments of some of The Athletic’s writers. Please join the debate in the comments section beneath.
It is the question that will define the Carsley era: how to make the most of the attacking talent at his disposal?
At the European Championship this summer Gareth Southgate tried to play Foden and Bellingham together, not getting much out of either, while leaving Palmer on the bench. That option is surely not open to Carsley given that Palmer is the in-form player in the country, with six Premier League goals already this season.
He should be playing behind the striker, free to get into shooting positions — the role Grealish had in the last camp.
Kane also has to start now that he has seemingly recovered from his back injury. And Saka has started the season so well with Arsenal and provides balance down the right. That only leaves one position left in the front four.
It is not easy to pick between Foden and Bellingham but, in this team, I feel that Foden would be the better option. He is more involved in possession and, ideally, can stretch the opposition with his movement without the ball.
This means that if Bellingham plays he will have to go deeper, alongside Declan Rice in the middle of the pitch — not a bad option to have.
Jack Pitt-Brooke
Carsley must now put right where Southgate went wrong at Euro 2024 and give Palmer a chance from the start.
The 22-year-old is arguably England’s most in-form player. Palmer has been starring for Chelsea as a No 10, scoring six goals and making four assists in the Premier League this season. He needs the chance to run England’s attack from this position, which would mean Bellingham dropping deeper into midfield — though he is so good that will not hinder his contribution.
Saka’s displays for Arsenal mean he has to play on the right flank despite the presence of Madueke, who has struck up a great understanding with Chelsea team-mate Palmer, in the squad.
Gordon provides better balance for England on the left and showed signs of finding better form for Newcastle against Manchester City last weekend. That would mean no place for PFA Player of the Year Foden, but he has got off to a slow start to this campaign and is not as match sharp as the others.
Last, but no means least, England’s all-time leading scorer Harry Kane should lead the line once again. This quartet has the variety at the top end of the pitch you want: pace, creativity and the ability to finish.
Simon Johnson
With Kane’s best feature still his ability to drop back, it makes sense for England to have two wingers who are at their best with pincer-like runs in behind — those are Gordon and Saka.
Palmer’s form from the middle has been sensational. On the evidence of the last 18 months, he is effectively an upgrade on the Grealish role which Carsley trialled during the last international break.
Palmer, Gordon, and Saka are all fluid enough to interchange throughout the match — as too is Bellingham, who would partner Rice in central midfield in this formation. Picking a full-back with the ability to invert, such as Rico Lewis, would be a good option in this scenario to shore up the midfield.
There are certain matches where, against deep-lying opposition, it may make sense to move Palmer to the wing (or consider Foden) and have Bellingham as a box-crashing option. Those games are a chance to experiment with Kobbie Mainoo, Adam Wharton or Angel Gomes as the second midfielder.
For games against elite opposition, however, pure wingers with Palmer empowered is England’s most dangerous combination.
Jacob Whitehead
With Finland and Greece both likely to sit in a mid-to-low block against England, space will be at a premium in the final third — making the energetic, transitional qualities of Gordon and Madueke less potent.
However, as the game progresses and gaps begin to appear, bringing on either winger against tired legs is the stuff of nightmares for an opposition full-back.
Kane will undoubtedly start, and Palmer’s exceptional form makes him impossible to leave him out. Playing the 22-year-old in a role similar to his position at Chelsea would give him the freedom to exploit space and punish the opposition as he sees fit.
On the wings, Saka is perfectly suited to overcoming a stubborn defensive block from the right, with regular experience of doing so for Arsenal.
On the left, Bellingham might not offer pace on the outside but his ability to find the pockets of space would be crucial for England’s creativity in tight areas. Bellingham could drift inside and break the opposition back line with his trademark box-crashing run. His off-ball discipline is also not to be underestimated, having shown he can drop into the left side of England’s defensive shape for club and country.
Mark Carey
Carsley explained at his press conference at St George’s Park that he had made some choices because he wanted to “use this period of the next two camps to experiment and look at other players”.
He should do that and, in the process, perhaps he can experiment and see whether he can incorporate all his best attacking players in one team.
Palmer is crying out to start and, preferably, in a position where he can affect the team the most — as the No 10. But what about Bellingham, another of England’s best players? Well, in games where attacking low blocked defences will be key, why not try him alongside Rice in midfield with licence to roam forward on occasion?
So what of Foden? On his day he is a true maverick, so play him on the left opposite Saka on the right flank.
But that would mean losing the pace and ability to run in behind that Gordon provides, especially as Kane no longer stretches defences. So might this be an opportunity to rest him? He remains a regular scorer, but looked tired as Bayern Munich lost in the Champions League tie at Aston Villa this week.
So, speaking of Villa who have made a great start to the season, why not play Watkins? His game allies pace, movement and the ability to run behind defences is his game. This is the time to see whether he can link up with that mouth-watering array of creative talent.
That’s what a brave manager would do.
Rob Tanner
(Top photo: Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)
