England predicted line-up vs. Greece: Three changes with Kane a serious doubt as Bellingham returns

Lee Carsley will be hoping to maintain his 100% record as England’s interim head coach when his Three Lions take on Greece at Wembley on Thursday evening – but a slew of injury withdrawals have limited his selection options.

Kobbie Mainoo, Ezri Konsa and Morgan Gibbs-White all pulled out of the squad earlier this week citing fitness problems. Carsley and The FA initially declined to call up any replacements, but on Wednesday added Curtis Jones and Tino Livramento to the squad to bolster their numbers. To make matters worse, captain Harry Kane is a doubt following a knock he sustained during Bayern Munich’s 3-3 draw away to Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.

We’ve got all the latest updates on Kane’s condition and the rest of the team news as well as our predicted line-up ahead of the Nations League tie with Greece below.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Carsley will have to try out a new centre-back pairing against Greece thanks to the withdrawal of Konsa, who started against Finland alongside John Stones but suffered an unspecified injury in the second half of the 0-0 draw against Manchester United. Harry Maguire, who started against the Republic of Ireland, is also injured but was not called up to the squad in the first place.

That means that Stones will most likely start alongside Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guéhi, with Levi Colwill the only other fit centre-back in the squad. Trent Alexander-Arnold is expected to reprise his role at right-back despite the return of Kyle Walker to the squad, while Rico Lewis will likely start at left-back again, as he did against Finland. Jordan Pickford will likely continue in goal.

Midfield

The most interesting selection decision facing Carsley comes in midfield. In his first two matches, Carsley opted for a double pivot featuring Declan Rice alongside either Angel Gomes or the injured Mainoo with Jack Grealish working the channels further forward – but now Carsley can also call upon Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and newly-minted England Men’s Player of the Year Cole Palmer.

Carsley could opt for a more attacking midfield three with Bellingham and Grealish alongside Rice, or could simply stick with the system and experiment with the players ahead of him. Grealish would certainly have every right to feel aggrieved if he lost his starting spot following fine performances in both of England’s opening Nations League matches, but it will be hard to leave both Bellingham and Palmer out, in particular. With Foden only recently returning to full fitness, he may well start on the bench.

Forwards

The big question is whether Kane, who scored both goals against Finland last time out, will be ready to play. The England captain has been training separately from the rest of the team as he attempts to get back to full fitness following what appeared to be a thigh injury sustained in a collision in the second half of the Bundesliga game against Frankfurt. It is not believed to be a serious issue, but may well be enough to keep him out of Thursday’s starting line-up.

If he does miss out, Tottenham Hotspur striker Dominic Solanke may well be handed his first England start, seven years after he made his debut as a substitute against Brazil. Ollie Watkins would be the alternative, but Solanke would perhaps be better suited to playing Kane’s specific role in the side.

Bukayo Saka will likely start on the right wing, while a solution to the Grealish conundrum could be to play him on the left wing ahead of Foden or Anthony Gordon, who missed a penalty in Newcastle United’s 0-0 draw with Everton over the weekend.

Pickford; Lewis, Guéhi, Stones, Alexander-Arnold; Rice, Gomes, Bellingham; Saka, Solanke, Grealish.