Lee Carsley refuses to accept praise for two key tactical decisions after they paid off spectacularly in England’s 3-0 win over Greece
Lee Carsley refused to accept the adulation after his decision to drop England captain Harry Kane paid off spectacularly in Athens on Thursday night.
Kane was left on the bench as Ollie Watkins was handed an opportunity to shine, a chance the Aston Villa striker grabbed by scoring the opener in a 3-0 victory as England took control of their Nations League group ahead of Sunday’s final game versus Ireland.
Carsley’s other big selection of the night also reaped rewards as Curtis Jones scored on his international debut to cap an excellent performance.
But it was his decision to rest Kane, who is understood to have been nursing a minor niggle, that caught the eye ahead of the game.
Carsley praised Kane – who is expected to start against Ireland on Sunday – for how he accepted the news, saying: ‘He was absolutely fine. Fair to say he wants to play every game but he understands it’s important for other players to experience what they did tonight but I expect him to start on Sunday and play well.’
But on a night when everything Carsley touched turned to gold, the interim head coach said: ‘No, I don’t take any extra satisfaction (from the two big decisions).
Lee Carsley refused to accept the praise after his decision to drop Harry Kane paid off on Thursday
Curtis Jones scored on his debut and drew praise from his manager for an ‘outstanding’ display
Ollie Watkins opened the scoring in the first half after replacing Harry Kane in the starting XI
‘I see the quality the players have got. The younger ones are more than capable with the quality and mentality they’ve got.
‘Curtis was outstanding, played with quality and a matureness. He showed he can adapt and he’s intelligent enough to know where the space is.
‘Jude [Bellingham] was really good, Connor [Gallagher] and Curtis worked really well together. A lot of positives tonight.
‘It’s important if we want to put players in a position to win the World Cup that these players have as many experiences as we can, it’s no slight on Harry. He’ll start the next game.
‘I think we have shown in the past we have so many quality players. Biggest challenge is fitting them all in but we’ve played with that balance.
‘Players come in and out of form so you have to take that into account.
Meanwhile, the FA are investigating reports that England fans were teargassed and strong-armed by police ahead of Thursday night’s clash.
Supporters have complained of rough treatment by Greek police and eye witnesses say English fans were not to blame.
Jones, Lewis Hall and Morgan Rogers all made their debuts for the Three Lions in Athens
Supporters have complained of rough treatment by Greek police and eye witnesses say English fans were not to blame
It is understood the FA had expressed their concerns to Greek police statement amid concerns over how the security was being orgnaised.
A statement read: ‘We are aware that some of our fans had a difficult experience outside the ground and are obtaining more information on exactly what happened.’
