Which stars could return to England’s squad under Lee Carsley, and which new faces could break through?

Lee Carsley is about to reveal his first full England squadLee Carsley is about to reveal his first full England squad
Lee Carsley is about to reveal his first full England squad | Getty Images
The interim boss will pick his squad for the first time today for upcoming Nations League matches against Finland and the Republic of Ireland - will he shake up the group that came second in the Euros?

What turned out to be Gareth Southgate’s final England squad saw some glaring omissions this summer, but fortunately for those players there’s a new man in charge and they could find themselves back in the fold. However, they’ll face stiff competition from talented youngsters that Carsley is familiar with from his time in England’s youth setup - here are some names to look out for in this afternoon’s list.

The defence: New faces at full back possible

Full-back is a potential problem for England with many established names unavailable, meaning some new faces could emerge. Ben White’s relationship with England has been complicated to say the least; he hasn’t featured for the Three Lions since leaving the 2022 World Cup early in what was apparently an argument with coach Steve Holland. Some wondered if he would return to the fold after Holland left along with Southgate, but reports suggest neither player nor coach is particularly keen on the prospect.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

That means White is unlikely to feature - Luke Shaw is also out with an ongoing injury problem, and Kieran Trippier has just this morning announced his retirement from international football. That rules out two of the defenders who travelled to Germany this summer; elsewhere in the back line though, Harry Maguire could be set to make a return after missing the Euros through injury.

Maguire has had a mixed start to the season, performing well in Manchester United’s opener against Fulham before being caught out against Brighton. Marc Guehi will almost certainly keep his place after impressing in Germany - Kyle Walker had a good tournament, but has not played yet this season in the Premier League.

His Manchester City colleague Rico Lewis could be in with a chance of a call-up, as could Newcastle’s Tino Livramento (who has displaced Trippier in the Magpies’ starting lineup). Levi Colwill is well known to Carsley from the U21 team and could become involved. Defence is definitely an area that, with Reece James and Luke Shaw injured, Kieran Trippier retiring, and Kyle Walker lacking in minutes with his club, could see a refresh. Behind them, it’s hard to think

Jordan Pickford will keep his place between the sticks - but Aaron Ramsdale will hope that a rumoured move to Southampton, where he can expect to pick up more minutes, could help him compete in future for the number 1 shirt.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The midfield: Who will replace Jude Bellingham?

Most of the six names picked by Gareth Southgate this summer seem unlikely to be displaced - Trent Alexander-Arnold will hope he can find a better rhythm under Carsley than he managed in Germany this summer, while Conor Gallagher, fresh off a move to Atlético Madrid, could return to the UK for this camp. Kobbie Mainoo and Declan Rice remain likely picks, and Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton - though he struggled for minutes in Germany - will feel he deserves another chance at a spot.

However, Carsley (through no fault of his own) will have no choice but to replace England’s star man Jude Bellingham. After wowing crowds with his antics (including a certain overhead kick) this summer, Bellingham recently confirmed that he is out for of contention for club and country until late September as he is suffering from plantar fasciitis, a painful foot condition. Bellingham’s boots will be very difficult to fill, and it will be interesting to see who Lee Carsley selects - Jack Grealish was left out of Southgate’s final squad and is one of the big names who could step in. However, he only has one substitute appearance under Pep Guardiola so far this season.

Tottenham’s James Maddison was among the last to be cut out of this summer’s squad - he has seven caps with England and has enjoyed two starts so far this season, unlike many of the others who missed out in the summer. Could it be his time to return?

Curtis Jones, also well known to Carsley, left this summer’s squad at the same time as Maddison. James Garner and Harvey Elliott are among the other recognisable names from his U21 championship-winning side who could plug the gap left by Bellingham in the midfield, but it would be a tall order.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The attack: familiar faces ready to call on for Carsley

The forwards Gareth Southgate named this summer are all available for Carsley’s selection and all have continued to play important roles for their clubs of late, with the exception of Ivan Toney - the Brentford striker has not featured so far this Premier League season, but due to transfer speculation rather than form. Carsley has spoken about his desire to make his mark on the England squad, but this is an area of the pitch where he’s done so before even taking the job.

Anthony Gordon speaks glowingly of his time under Carsley as a youngster; Cole Palmer also featured in that successful U21 Euros run. Both are now established choices for England - therefore this might be a case of little difference in squad selection, but perhaps more difference in pitch time. Neither started a single one of England’s seven games in the tournament - could that change under their new boss? It’s also fair to say, though Phil Foden only has one substitute appearance so far this campaign (having been ill for City’s second fixture), that he’s likely to feature.

He’s familiar to Carsley from their time together at Manchester City, when the new England manager coached him as an under-18. There are gambles Carsley could make in attack - Noni Madueke made headlines recently with a hattrick for Chelsea and was another of Carsley’s Euro-winning youngsters, as was Morgan Gibbs-White.

However, it would be an extremely bold move to displace the likes of Ollie Watkins, Bukayo Saka, or Harry Kane to fit them in. Marcus Rashford will also wait to see if he can make his way beach into the England setup after Southgate’s decision to leave him out this summer - but his first two league games with United this season haven’t made an especially compelling case.

Carsley will announce his squad at 2pm on August 29.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.

Telling news your way
Follow us
©National World Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice