England host Greece at Wembley on Thursday in Group B2 of the UEFA Nations League, with both teams looking to extend their perfect starts in the latest edition of the tournament.

Lee Carsley made an impressive start to his interim spell against the Republic of Ireland and Finland during the last international break in September, while Ivan Jovanović also started his stewardship of the Greek national team with wins against the same opposition.

Greece lead the group on goal difference as it stands, something England will be looking to overturn when the sides meet.

The match remains indelibly etched in the memories of many English fans after David Beckham’s final free-kick secured a 2-2 draw at Old Trafford in October 2002 and secured the Three Lions’ passage to the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Africa sealed. Korea.

Key details:

Date: Thursday, October 10 at 7:45 PM BST (2:45 PM ET).

Location: Wembley Stadium

Referee: Andrea Colombo

VAR: Valerio Marini

How to watch:

The game will be shown live on ITV and ITVX in the UK. You can also follow ESPN’s live updates.

Team news:

Carsley’s first England squad in September was deemed daring after he selected the likes of Lille midfielder Angel Gomes and Chelsea’s Noni Madueke, players he had worked with in the youth academy, and both have been retained for the October matches.

Dominic Solanke’s early season form for Tottenham earned him a first call-up since 2017, and the former Bournemouth man will no doubt look to make his mark amid competition from Harry Kane and Ollie Watkins.

Captain Kane was a concern for the interim coach after he limped out of Bayern Munich’s 3-3 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday, but tests carried out on Monday showed he had suffered no structural damage. That said, the former Spurs star trained on his own on Tuesday, with England saying he was “working on an individualized program indoors” at their St George’s Park base.

Three names from the selection mentioned by Carsley have been withdrawn due to injury problems. The English FA said Ezri Konsa, Kobbie Mainoo and Morgan Gibbs-White will miss both matches, and on Wednesday it was confirmed that Tino Livramento and Curtis Jones had been added as replacements.

The biggest problem for Greece will be the fitness of star striker Fotis Ioannidis, who had to be substituted in the final moments of Panathinaikos’ derby draw against Olympiacos on Sunday.

Form guide

Carsley’s back-to-back 2-0 wins over Ireland and Finland followed Gareth Southgate’s final run as England manager, where the Three Lions reached the Euro 2024 final but were beaten by Spain in the final.

A victory over Switzerland in the quarter-final on penalties preceded a 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in the semi-final, thanks to Ollie Watkins’ sharp finish in the closing stages.

Cole Palmer looked to have breathed life into England with his precise equalizer in the final in Berlin, before Marc Cucurella’s precise cross found Mikel Oyarzabal who extended the national team’s tournament heartache to at least 60 years by the time the next opportunity in the United States presents itself occurs. Mexico and Canada come along.

Greece, meanwhile, heartbreakingly missed out on the European Championship, losing on penalties to Georgia in the play-off final under Gus Poyet. Since then, their interim coach Nikos Papadopoulos oversaw a 2-1 friendly defeat to Germany, followed by a 3-0 win over Malta, before Jovanović began his stewardship with a 2-0 away win at Ireland and a 3-0 home win against Finland. .

Panathinaikos striker Ioannidis has been in good form for the national team, scoring three goals in the two Nations League games so far.