England head to Athens for their crunch Nations League match against Greece with a better nucleus of players on the absentee list than in interim coach Lee Carsley’s final squad before Thomas Tuchel takes the reins in the New Year.
Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Aaron Ramsdale have all withdrawn from the squad, with John Stones, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw Kobbie Mainoo and Eberechi Eze already ruled out by injury.
That’s some serious strength missing from a match the Three Lions must win if they are to retain any hope of gaining promotion back to the tournament’s elite level.
England need to gain revenge after the shock 2-1 defeat to the Greeks at Wembley and win by a two-goal margin to return to the top of Group B and then defeat Ireland in London on Sunday to achieve their aim.
There’s still stacks of good players at Carsley’s disposal and he has the freedom to go out on a high by playing an aggressive, expansive game before returning to his previous post as the England Under-21 manager.
The Three Lions have won on their only four visits to Greece but the last was in 2001 and the modern-day hosts are rock solid on home turf and have lost just one of 11 Nations League matches in front of their own fans, winning eight and drawing two, and they will be a tough nut to crack.
There should be enough pride in the England camp to win any time they represent the country but the truth of the matter is that the Nations League is not what matters, success at the 2026 World Cup tops Tuchel’s agenda.
With so many players missing and Greece in great form following victories over the Republic of Ireland and Finland, it’s tough to see England getting the required victory.
The draw is 12/5 with Ladbrokes and Coral and a 1-1 final score is 11/2 with bet365, BoyleSports, Sky Bet, Betfred and Bet Victor.
Dependable Harry Kane is 22/5 with Unibet and BetMGM to break the deadlock and 33/20 with the same firms to score at any time.
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• Old man Mike Tyson, 58, fights 27-year-old YouTuber Jake Paul on Saturday and if you really want to take it seriously and intend to watch, have a bet on the former world champion to triumph at 11/5 with Sporting Index.
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