Finland v England LIVE: Nations League team news and line-ups as Lee Carsley faces Ollie Watkins dilemma | OneFootball

✕

Close

Carsley and Guehi want England 'reaction' in Finland

England travel to Helsinki to face Finland at the Olympic Stadium this evening in the Nations League, with kick-off at 5pm BST.

The Three Lions enter the match off the back of a humbling 2-1 defeat to Greece at Wembley last time out, and they now sit three points behind the Greeks in the League B Group 2 table at the halfway stage.

Finland enter the match bottom of the table, having gained no points across three games, and lost 2-1 to Ireland in Helsinki last week.

Interim England boss Lee Carsley is under scrutiny after his experimental, striker-less line-up against Greece failed miserably, so his selection will be scrutinised closely with Ollie Watkins a candidate to come in as a recognised No 9.

Wales surrender two-goal lead in sketchy draw with Iceland as Craig Bellamy maintains unbeaten start

A reminder of some of the other home nations results from the past few days.

Wales let a two-goal lead slip as Iceland stormed back to force a deserved 2-2 Nations League draw in Reykjavik.

Brennan Johnson maintained his remarkable scoring streak and Harry Wilson was also on target as Wales established a commanding interval advantage.

But Iceland substitute Logi Tomasson turned the game in the space of three second-half minutes as Wales were unable to stem a blue tide surging towards them.

Wales surrender two-goal lead in sketchy draw with Iceland as Bellamy still unbeaten

Iceland 2-2 Wales: Brennan Johnson and Harry Wilson scored first-half goals before the hosts’ comeback

Chris Wilson13 October 2024 15:07

Who will win Nations League 2024/25 and what do England need for promotion?

England

Lee Carsley has a somewhat easier task as interim boss of the Three Lions, with England in B2. They were cruising after two wins from two, though that loss to Greece has put the Three Lions in second place with six points, three behind the Greeks, with the reverse fixture taking place in November.

England really should top the group and earn promotion back to League A - but Ireland, in the same group, have lost both their matches so far. Finland and Greece are games they need points from but they are away in both this time around.

For England, they had a chance to try out a few more unfamiliar faces or even established faces in different roles, as Carsley has already hinted at - but that seemingly failed against Greece, and the overarching aim remains promotion.

For that, keeping a 100 per cent record will for the rest of the campaign is a necessity now really, with the Three Lions needing three points against Greece in the return fixture in Athens.

Chris Wilson13 October 2024 15:00

Who will win Nations League 2024/25 and what do England need for promotion?

The Nations League takes centre stage once more this week as the international break returns and countries across the continent enter competitive matches once more, of a fashion at least.

While Uefa’s newest international adventure still divides opinion - and seriousness in team selections, perhaps - this season’s version does come with the usual backup qualifying spots for the next major international men’s tournament, in this case the 2026 World Cup.

In practice that means the four best group winners from the Nations League who don’t finish in the top two in World Cup qualifying groups will earn another shot at reaching USA, Mexico and Canada, by way of the playoffs. Here’s where England, the home nations and the rest of the major nations stand as we head into match rounds three and four.

Who will win Nations League 2024/25 and what do England need for promotion?

England and Wales are looking at promotion while Ireland and Scotland could face the drop

Chris Wilson13 October 2024 14:45

5 talking points as England look to respond to Greece defeat against Finland

‘Carsball’ in question

Carsley’s decision to deploy five attackers without an out-and-out striker backfired against Greece, leaving England rudderless without the ball and toothless with it in an alarming all-round display.

The interim manager pledged to stick with his attack-minded approach, but a more familiar system will be in place in Helsinki.

“Probably won’t try that again on Sunday,” Carsley said. “I have coached enough to know we need to do something different. Had Harry been fit I might have gone down another route.”

5 talking points as England look to respond to Greece defeat against Finland

Helsinki is the next Nations League stop for Lee Carsley’s men.

Chris Wilson13 October 2024 14:22

Lee Carsley wants to see reaction from England against Finland after Greece loss

Interim England boss Lee Carsley expects a reaction to the deflating defeat to Greece as he returns to a “more conventional” system against Finland.

The Euro 2024 runners-up’s hopes of securing promotion back to the top tier of the Nations League received a blow on Thursday as Greece secured a late, but thoroughly deserved, 2-1 victory at Wembley.

Boos met the final whistle after Carsley’s experimental approach backfired, with the decision to deploy five attackers without an out-and-out striker leaving them imbalanced and disjointed.

Chris Wilson13 October 2024 14:15