A failed experiment, which will doubtless lead to the first calls over whether that should be said of Lee Carsley. The interim England manager himself said he wouldn’t describe his tactical approach to this first senior defeat in that way, only to also say it was something worth trying. He then actually refused to confirm he wanted the job, but talked around it so much he started to tie himself in knots.
There was even an unfortunate slip where he said “hopefully” he’d be returning to under-21s, but that was surely just on the condition he doesn’t end up with the senior job. The scrutiny that comes with the latter was perhaps getting to him for the first time. There were moments when his explanations seemed as confused as his formation. Against that, Greece had such a clear focus. Their 2-1 away win was all the worse since the brilliant Vangelis Pavlidis scored both of their goals to show Carsley the value of a forward on a night when he took the historic step to go without one.
A line that goes from Dixie Dean to Harry Kane was broken, for a false nine that will instead bring talk of a false dawn.
Another little twist on the night was that Jude Bellingham did score England’s only goal, but that after he had been moved back from the forward position after a formation that clearly failed. Carsley was no doubt doing his own thing – how else to describe this approach? – but he still looked like he was appealing to popular sentiment by putting all his stars in the same side. Bellingham led a strange team that also included Cole Palmer, Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka.
“It was a case of, ‘let’s try something different’,” Carsley explained afterwards. “I’m happy to take the blame for that. It was totally my idea. I thought about it long and hard in terms of how it might look, how it might feel. It probably didn’t come off tonight… it definitely didn’t but I don’t think we give up on having that opportunity to try something different.”
There was still one familiar issue, though. This is maybe where there is a touch more concern than just over the formation, especially as Carsley later clarified they had only actually worked on it for 20 minutes. The manager trying this approach once was fair enough, and where better to give a competitive test than in a mere Nations League game where you have already won twice. England could maybe have done with more forgiving opponents than Greece for that, mind. The visitors were up for it, and clearly emotionally emboldened by the tragic passing of former international George Baldock. Before getting into the tactical and technical discussion, it is worth recognising how touching it was that the Greek players had tears in their eyes when celebrating Pavlidis’s goals.
Those strikes didn’t just come from the formation, though. They came from something that has been a more concerning characteristic from Carsley’s team, and is maybe where more focus should be. That is a porousness through the centre. Both Ireland and Finland created chances in those initial wins, and Greece did much more than that here. “The expectancy is that we’re a big team who will beat Greece comfortably at Wembley,” Carsey said. “You have to take into consideration that the opposition are highly-motivated and will try to stop you.”
They were instead getting through England so easily that it led to sheer panic in the defence, with accomplished defenders ending up desperately trying to kick the ball while prone on the ground. “I thought all of the goals were poor,” Carsley said of his own players’ errors. It said much that both of Pavlidis’s goals ended up looking so similar, albeit with the two being crowned by classic striker’s finishes.
It was remarkable, especially for a team and a manager who are supposed to be about tactical control. The tone had nevertheless been set by Jordan Pickford coming out to almost immediately give the ball away, before flapping at a corner. The goalkeeper was spared by Levi Colwill’s initial clearance and then the offside flag. Greece just kept coming, though. They sensed something was on.
That was because England’s stars were so off it. While this wasn’t all about the formation, it’s impossible not to focus on it.
It got so extreme, with England so lacking in control or balance, that it was hard not to muse whether it was one of those Jose Mourinho line-ups that is part political point. Will anyone ever ask Carsley about playing all of the star attackers again?
Well, probably. It will likely only take one dull half for the clamour to start, and even this display should be caveated with the fact this was just one game and it was these players in just one approach, with that after 20 minutes’ work. Carsley actually made a point of saying it’s an option to try again in the future. He also explained: “I thought it was a creative way of trying to play… getting some of our attacking players on the pitch, to see what that would look like.”
It didn’t look great, with some long-obvious problems. Foden and Bellingham again got in each other’s way, in situations that looked such a repetition from the summer. That was despite Bellingham playing in that different role as a false nine. It was maybe no surprise he got his goal when he was moved back.
Palmer meanwhile may be one of the most tactically versatile players in England for his technique and game intelligence, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a waste putting him in this midfield role. It led to the most conspicuous element of England’s performance. That was a huge gap in the centre of the pitch, and often between the attackers.
After years when Southgate teams were criticised for not having enough creativity, Carsley here went too far in the other direction. His team were crying out for more of Southgate’s order.
Carsley did eventually introduce it, and it was ironic – and maybe someway logical – that one of England’s most expansive ever formations actually finished up as something closer to a traditional 4-4-2.
That defensive porousness still remained, though. Greece had a goal-line clearance, the initial Pavlidis goal, and three goals disallowed. It was all building to something, and that wasn’t Carsley conjuring an intervention to make the job his.
Greece were instead going to make the night theirs. By the 93rd minute, the same issues played out, as the same forward scored. It was no less than Greece deserved. It will raise the first big questions over whether Carsley should get a job that looked like it was his to take.
