England's upcoming match against Greece on Thursday will be the first since the appointment of new head coach Thomas Tuchel. The former Bayern Munich and Chelsea boss, who took over from Gareth Southgate on October 16, will officially begin his role in January, but for now, Lee Carsley remains in charge for England’s final two Nations League matches against Greece and the Republic of Ireland this month.
Carsley's experiment with team selection in last month's disappointing loss to Greece didn’t go as planned, but England quickly bounced back with a 3-1 win over Finland in Helsinki, keeping their hopes of promotion to League A alive while also setting a new national team record.
Ranked fourth in the world by FIFA, England currently sit second in their Nations League group, three points behind leaders Greece. A win by at least two goals on Thursday will see them leapfrog Greece into first place on goal difference, with one final game to play.
England have won their last two Nations League away matches by a two-goal margin beating Finland 3-1 and Ireland 2-0. They also have a strong record against Greece, winning all four of their previous visits there by a combined score of 9-1. In fact, only against Luxembourg (5/5) do the Three Lions have a better 100% away win rate against another country.
Since Ivan Jovanovic took over as head coach in August, Greece have been in outstanding form, winning all four of their Nations League matches in their first season in League B. They’ve scored nine goals and conceded just one, and a win over England will guarantee them promotion to League A for the first time in their history.
Greece’s perfect record in the group includes a historic 1-0 win over England at Wembley last month, a victory made all the more emotional by the tragic death of 12-cap international George Baldock at the age of 31. The team then returned home and continued their winning streak with a 2-0 victory over Ireland, thanks to second-half goals from Anastasios Bakasetas and Petros Mantalos.
Currently ranked 42nd in the world, Greece know that a win over England will secure top spot in the group with one game to spare, while even a draw will keep them at the summit, based on their superior head-to-head record.
With a solid home record in the Nations League winning eight and drawing two of their 11 matches, while keeping a clean sheet in nine of those games—Greece will be confident of getting another positive result against the Three Lions in front of their home crowd.
INJURIES & SUSPENSIONS
Greece midfielder Dimitrios Kourbelis will miss Thursday's match due to a one-match suspension from accumulated yellow cards, so either Petros Mantalos, Christos Zafeiris, or Sotiris Alexandropoulos could step in to partner Manolis Siopis in midfield.
In goal, Odysseas Vlachodimos, despite limited playing time at Newcastle United this season, remains Greece's first-choice keeper and is expected to start. Defensively, Liverpool’s Kostas Tsimikas and West Ham’s Konstantinos Mavropanos are set to feature in the backline.
Up front, Vangelis Pavlidis, who scored twice in the reverse fixture against England, will likely continue leading the attack. However, Fotis Ioannidis, who netted three goals in Greece’s first two Nations League matches before being sidelined by injury, is back in the squad. Greece have never lost when Ioannidis has scored, with three wins and one draw.
For England, there are several notable absences, including Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill, and Aaron Ramsdale, all of whom have pulled out of the squad. Additionally, John Stones, Kobbie Mainoo, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, and Eberechi Eze were omitted due to injury.
In response, Morgan Rogers, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, and Lewis Hall have all earned their first senior call-ups, alongside Jarrod Bowen, Jarrad Branthwaite, Valentino Livramento, and James Trafford, who were all added to the squad on Monday.
Kyle Walker remains in the squad despite being a fitness concern, and it’s uncertain whether he’ll start at right-back or if Livramento, Ezri Konsa, or Manchester City’s Rico Lewis will get the nod. Lewis, along with Hall, is also a contender for the left-back spot.
With Rice absent, Lille’s Angel Gomes could partner Atletico Madrid’s Conor Gallagher in central midfield. Meanwhile, in attack, Noni Madueke, Jude Bellingham, and Anthony Gordon may support Harry Kane, the team’s captain and central striker, in the final third.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
Greece possible starting lineup:
Vlachodimos; Rota, Mavropanos, Koulierakis, Tsimikas; Siopis, Mantalos; Masouras, Bakasetas, Tzolis; Pavlidis
England possible starting lineup:
Pickford; Walker, Konsa, Guehi, Lewis; Gomes, Gallagher; Madueke, Bellingham, Gordon; Kane
EXPERT PREDICTION
Greece 1-2 England
The pressure is on Lee Carsley to guide England to a crucial win, and his team will need to take the initiative against Greece, who have been strong on home soil and tough to break down in front of their fans.
While England will be missing several key players that Carsley would have ideally wanted for this match, he still has plenty of talent to work with. If he opts for a more settled lineup, with Harry Kane leading the attack, the Three Lions should have just enough to secure the win in Athens.
