Teamwork makes the dream work

Greece make historical past as England’s attacking experiment fails

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LONDON — On the plus facet, Lee Carsley now has a ready-made reply the subsequent time he is requested if all of England‘s greatest younger attackers can match into the identical crew.

The draw back for the interim supervisor is that find out the reply he might need dented his prospects of getting the job full-time. A crew that crammed in Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Anthony Gordon was shocked 2-1 by Greece on Thursday within the UEFA Nations League.

Carsley’s ultra-attacking experiment had lengthy since been deserted by the point Vangelis Pavlidis scored a stoppage-time winner to ship the Greeks’ nook of Wembley right into a sea of blue and white bedlam. In fact, although, they had been by far the higher crew, and it stated every little thing about their superiority that they’d the ball within the internet 5 instances.

It was lucky for Carsley that the offside flag meant solely two counted and an evening which threatened to descend into utter humiliation held on at simply plain embarrassing.

“I did not assume we began the sport nice and I assumed that we had been second greatest plenty of instances,” Carsley stated. “We tried one thing completely different with the formation and the areas of the pitch we tried to get into.

“We by no means actually gave ourselves an opportunity to see if it was the fitting resolution or improper.

“Clearly trying on the consequence and the way the sport panned out it was a difficult evening for us. Greece performed nicely. I assumed they had been extremely motivated as you’ll anticipate and had been second greatest tonight.”

With Harry Kane sidelined due to a thigh drawback, Carsley threw warning to the wind. Maybe getting sick of the argument about whether or not Bellingham, Foden or Palmer ought to play as England’s No. 10, he determined to select all of them. Saka and Gordon had been chosen on the wings however reasonably than a flurry of attacking soccer, as an alternative they served a tactical mishmash.

With no stability and no discernible patterns, Greece had been in a position to defend with relative ease.

A Bellingham effort that was tipped over the bar within the second minute was England’s solely shot on course till Bellingham popped up once more on the sting of the penalty space to attain an 87th-minute equaliser.

Within the intervening 85 minutes, probably the most correct effort from an Englishman got here when a paper aeroplane thrown from the gang hit Greece captain Anastasios Bakasetas as he made one other rampaging run ahead. Greeks racing ahead had been themes of the evening. Too typically Declan Rice was left making an attempt to place out fires whereas Bellingham, Foden and Palmer had been caught upfield.

Palmer — who was named England’s Participant of the Yr this week regardless of taking part in simply 144 minutes on the Euros — was so deep that he collected his first two passes from centre-back Levi Colwill. He clearly had the licence to roam ahead, nevertheless it meant he was caught in a clumsy center floor by no means actually positive which means he ought to be going.

“With the gamers we’ve acquired, we’ve to be brave at instances with our methods and be inventive,” Carsley stated.

“I assumed it was vital to strive one thing completely different. It was a case of let’s strive one thing completely different and I am completely happy to take blame for that. It was completely my thought. I considered it lengthy and arduous, when it comes to the way it would possibly look, the way it would possibly construct and the way it would possibly really feel. It’s one thing that did not come off tonight.”

With Trent Alexander-Arnold allowed to maneuver into the centre from right-back, Foden, Bellingham and Palmer had been all misplaced to the midfield melee. There have been too many our bodies when England tried to assault and never sufficient once they had been requested to defend. There was a warning after simply 5 minutes when a fast Greece counter assault left England two-on-two on the again. Pavlidis shot broad however made up for it later with two well-taken targets.

Carsley was finally compelled right into a change when Saka went off injured virtually instantly after half-time. Gordon and Foden adopted not lengthy afterwards, however by then Greece had realised {that a} historic consequence was there for the taking and had been in no temper to move up the chance.

It seemed like Bellingham’s late objective had robbed them of the victory they completely deserved, however Pavlidis had different concepts. His 94th-minute objective earned Greece their first-ever win over England whereas additionally re-writing historical past because the lowest-ranked facet to win a aggressive sport on English soil.

At 48 in FIFA’s rankings, they sit simply above Costa Rica and Chile.

England subsequent head to Finland and for Carsley it is going to be again to the drafting board. Maybe the identical now goes for the FA as they proceed their seek for a brand new everlasting supervisor.

Nationwide anthem singing apart, the favored opinion was that Carsley had boosted his prospects with wins over the Republic of Eire and Finland over the last worldwide break.

However there will be little doubt that shedding to Greece — a crew that didn’t qualify for final summer season’s Euros — is a significant setback. The consequence was dangerous, the efficiency was worse and the talk about whether or not England’s array of attacking stars can play collectively has been put to mattress as soon as and for all.