England will look for an immediate response after losing to Greece in their UEFA Nations League Group B opener on Thursday, and interim manager Lee Carsley will hope for an enterprising performance from his squad.
The England national football team vs Finland national football team lineups may see significant changes, as The Three Lions will benefit greatly from Harry Kane’s return and could reorganize their defence with Marc Guehi and Kyle Walker joining.
England XI vs Finland
England will face another test of character against Finland in Helsinki, who have lost both Nations League openers. England’s loss against Greece provided interim Three Lions coach Lee Carsley with an awakening, so he may opt for a more traditional team composition here.
Please click here to follow the game in real-time with build-up and match updates. England’s starting 11 will include Pickford as Goalkeeper; Lewis, Konsa and Stones for Alexander-Arnold; Rice Gordon Gomes Grealish Kane Saka.
England’s poor defensive performance against Greece left fans demanding they return to more conventional tactics this weekend in Helsinki against Finland, especially as promotion back into League A remains their aim following unexpected relegation in 2022/23. Success against Finland will be key for England in order to keep pace in their promotion campaign and move closer towards League A promotion.
Carsley’s experiment of an all-attacking side in their defeat to Greece did not go according to plan, so expect him to opt for something more familiar against Helsinki. Marc Guehi and Kyle Walker will likely start as centre-back pairing, while Jordan Henderson could come off the bench and start in goal.
Declan Rice may be paired with more conventional central players as Carsley looks to coax out his best from Manchester United’s star striker. Dominic Solanke, Ollie Watkins and Charlie Austin could all push for starts while Jack Grealish should remain at right-back after missing Thursday’s loss.
As England will be without Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden is doubtful due to injury concerns, England could find itself short of options up front. Erik Lamela or Dominic Solanke could step into start XI without them with Tino Livramento also considered for selection from Newcastle United’s squad – it will be interesting to see how our young stars respond! This could be their chance to shine!
England XI vs Greece
On Thursday night, England will face Greece in their penultimate Nations League Group B game of 2018, an important test in their bid for promotion back to tier one. Head coach Lee Carsley may make several adjustments from his side which was defeated 2-1 at Wembley by Greece on 10 October; these may include Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Jack Grealish and Trent Alexander-Arnold possibly not featuring.
Interim England manager Gareth Southgate employed an ultra-attacking set up against Greece but is expected to switch back to more conventional 4-2-3-1 formation for Helsinki. Harry Kane will likely lead England up front while Marc Guehi should come in alongside John Stones and Kyle Walker as part of three-man defence formation.
England are expected to still dominate possession against Greece despite missing two of their midfielders, and will hope for no discipline issues this time. They won both away games in this competition but allowed goals in each.
Greece will look to build upon their historic win against England and remain undefeated in Group B2. Vangelis Pavlidis from Benfica could feature again, and Fotis Ioannidis may return at left back. Newcastle United goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos may start between the sticks while Kostas Tsimikas, Konstantinos Mavropanos and Dimitrios Kourbelis will likely all contribute as defensive units within Greece’s defense unit.
England are unbeaten in six home matches against Greece since 2013, but have failed to beat Finland there since 2013. England are looking to clinch first spot in Group C by defeating Finland, currently third but with one game left against Greece. Victory by at least two goals would move them above Germany into first position – though Germany are themselves playing host to Malta on this same evening and may try and avoid losing that way too in order to remain at the top.
England XI vs Norway
England will look to respond after suffering an embarrassing loss against Greece in their opening game of the Nations League. Interim manager Lee Carsley will make several lineup changes for their trip to Helsinki, with Jack Grealish and Declan Rice likely featuring alongside Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge who should add some firepower in attack.
On Thursday at Wembley Stadium, England were defeated 2-1 by Euro 2004 winners Finland after Carsley’s experimental line-up failed to impress. Instead, for their trip to Finland Marc Guehi and John Stones returned as centre-backs while Kyle Walker joined them on the right and Trent Alexander-Arnold lined up as an inverted left-back position.
Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden could make his senior squad debut, while Tottenham duo Harry Kane and Eric Dier could partner. Newcastle United striker Aleksandar Mitrovi could also feature prominently as Carsley opts to use him as an outside forward, with Dominic Solanke and Ollie Watkins providing further options from the bench.
Bukayo Saka remains doubtful after suffering a hamstring strain during England’s loss to Greece, while Curtis Jones from Arsenal midfield has decided not to join due to personal reasons. Liverpool forward Sadio Mane should retain his spot due to his impressive scoring form for England so far this campaign.
Sweden will be without Kristoffer Nordfeldt due to a knee injury, while captain Viktor Claesson remains uncertain with an illness. Their opponents, which include Slovakia and Norway respectively, could start with Lukas Hradecky between the sticks with Jere Uronen, Robert Ivanov, Arttu Hoskonen and Nikolai Alho in defence; Matti Peltola and Rasmus Schuller will likely start as central defenders just in front of this back four, with Topi Keskinen providing pace down both flanks – plus news from around the globe via BBC Sport Newsletter subscription! For more news updates join BBC Sport today to stay up-to-date! Subscribe now for BBC Sport news! Subscribe now and stay up-to-date!
England XI vs Sweden
England are under immense pressure to respond quickly from their shock 2-0 loss against Greece when they kick-off Euro 2025 qualifiers against Finland on Sunday night. Interim manager Lee Carsley may make several adjustments from his side that started their Euro campaign with two 2-0 wins against Ireland and Finland.
Beth Maed will look to rebound from her disappointing display against Spain, while Stina Blackstenius could make an impactful contribution offensively for Arsenal.
Carsley will look to add additional attacking options, with Spurs forward Dominic Solanke likely featuring. Solanke scored against Italy during a friendly win against Brazil on Wednesday and has made an impressionful contribution since arriving on loan from Liverpool this season.
The Three Lions should field Jordan Henderson at midfield, with Jesse Lingard given more freedom in an attacking role despite his struggle so far at Euro 2016. Harry Kane may lead from the front, although Marcus Rashford may provide an alternate route against a Swedish side which offers little threat on the break.
Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford should retain his starting spot despite an underwhelming performance against Greece, Kieran Trippier is expected to remain right-sided, and Gareth Southgate may opt to continue using Jordan Henderson up front. Dele Alli should continue in an advanced role alongside wingers if Southgate opts for more direct tactics in Helsinki; otherwise Raheem Sterling or Marcus Rashford could play alongside Alli.
Bukayo Saka and Curtis Jones left the camp over the weekend but are expected to rejoin, along with Luke Shaw and Jack Grealish, two defenders who may feature for Liverpool against Greece. Joe Allen may not make the team, as he scored against them but will likely be replaced by Ollie Watkins or Dominic Solanke who have both made previous appearances against Greece.
Teemu Pukki will return to Finland’s starting XI following an injury layoff, with Venezia’s Joel Pohjanpalo expected to take up his place at the back. Markku Kanerva is unlikely to make significant alterations from his side which lost 2-0 against England at Wembley Stadium earlier this month.
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