England interim manager Lee Carsley has admitted that the Three Lions were second-best for most parts of the game after the failure of his false-nine experiment in their 2-1 UEFA Nations League defeat to Greece on Thursday, Soccernet.football reports.
England were without Harry Kane, who was sidelined through injury, leading Carsley to lineup without a recognized striker. Instead, Jude Bellingham, Cole Palmer and Phil Foden were tasked with interchanging the position in a fluid system.
However, the Three Lions failed to really get going in this system as they remained toothless in attack for most parts of the game. Meanwhile, Greece were in fine attacking form at Wembley, coming away with a sensational victory on an emotional night.
Vangelis Pavlidis scored twice, including a thrilling 94th-minute winner, as Greece secured their first competitive win over the Three Lions to move to the top of Nations League Group B2.
Anthony Gordon (5) was the only England player to register more than four touches in the Greece penalty area. Meanwhile, Bellingham, Foden, and Palmer combined for just one shot inside the box.
Carsley, who will remain in charge until the end of next month’s final Nations League fixtures, sees the defeat as part of a learning process.
“We were second best for a lot of tonight, it is disappointing. You are going to get setbacks, and it’s important that we respond,” Carsley told ITV Sport after the game.
“We tried something different and tried to overload the midfield. We tried it for 20 minutes, we experimented, and we’re disappointed it didn’t come off.
“It’s unrealistic to expect too much, and we will have to try again. All the goals were from mistakes, which is disappointing.
“It is definitely an option going forward. When you have someone of Kane’s quality, though, it rules it out when he is available.
“But in the future, you have to have the courage and ability to try things. We tried something different. It doesn’t change anything. My remit is to do the three camps.”