The rush for senior players to withdraw has disrupted England’s interim manager Lee Carsley’s plans for the final two matches this week.

Experienced internationals Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish, along with Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill, Aaron Ramsdale and substitute Jarrad Branthwaite, are the nine players who have withdrawn, most due to injury.

Captain Harry Kane He questioned whether being the third international break of a busy season was “a little exploited” and said he was unhappy with the situation. number of missing players.

“I don’t really like it to be completely honest. I think England comes first before anything else, before any club situation,” he told ITV Sport.

Some reports indicate that clubs are putting pressure on the number of departures from the game. Manchester City’s coach Pep Guardiola is critical It is Grealish’s first call-up for Nations League matches against Greece and the Republic of Ireland.

For players and fans, these two matches represent a strange period of ‘uncertainty’ before new head coach Thomas Tuchel takes over in January.

The substitutes called up by Carsley, including Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers (22) and Liverpool’s Jarell Quansah (21), increased the average age of the squad to just over 25. There are also 6 free players in the squad.

The average age of England’s Euro 2024 squad under former coach Gareth Southgate was 26.1, making it the third youngest team in the tournament behind Turkey (25.8) and the Czech Republic (25.3).

Carsley said he would put “his own stamp” on the England squad during his time as interim boss and would “refresh it” at every meeting. He certainly did.

He has turned to the “England way” players he knows well from his time as Under-21 manager, and despite the departures of Palmer and Colwill, his Euro 2023 squad includes eight players who beat Spain 1-0 in the final. .

But this is one of the least experienced teams in recent history; Harry Kane (101) and Kyle Walker (91) account for almost half the 400 in the entire squad. The UK has a 240 cap on high-profile withdrawals.

England need to win these two games to ensure automatic promotion to the Nations League top tier and ensure Tuchel’s first game is not a Nations League play-off rather than the World Cup qualifiers he has said he planned.

Tuchel will not be in Greece and Carsley said the German had no influence on the squad selection for this match and that he is “hugely respectful” of the work Carsley and his team are doing.

Ultimately, Carsley’s lasting impact may be that he follows a new generation of British stars quicker than expected.

All of this creates an interesting ‘audition’ for some of the players on this roster.

1.Morgan Rogers

Perhaps one of the players with the best chance of impressing is Aston Villa forward Morgan Rogers.

The 22-year-old has scored three goals and provided two assists in 11 appearances for his club, and calls from outside the squad for his inclusion have arguably been among the loudest in recent weeks.

Rogers said he was ready to step in before a “clean slate” when Tuchel took over.

“I try to push myself every day and see what new levels I can reach. I probably surprised myself a little bit with how well I did this season,” Rogers said.

“I always believed in myself that I could get to this level and maintain it.”

Rogers plays in a field where England have plenty of depth – but with Foden, Palmer, Grealish and Saka also featuring, the striker could have a big chance to show what he can do in a hostile environment against England rivals. separate in September.

2. Curtis Jones

Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones has been seen playing in England for some time and it is quite incredible that the 23-year-old, who has made almost 150 Liverpool appearances, is yet to make his debut for the Three Lions.

Jones was selected for the pre-Euro squad in June last year, but could not make the squad and was called up to the first team when withdrawals occurred in the past.

Carsley said Jones was “one of the best he’s worked with talent-wise” and could benefit from the absence of Kobbie Mainoo and Rice.

England sometimes struggle to dominate the ball against big nations in major tournaments and Jones’ performance at Liverpool may be enough for Tuchel to consider him someone who can help get them over the line.

Jones told BBC Radio 5 it was “tremendous” to be called up live and that it was the “perfect time” given his club form.

“One thing I’ve been saying for a while now is that I’m not a young lad anymore,” he added.

“You know, I have experience of Champions League matches and Premier League matches.”

3.Lewis Hall

England has had problems in the left-back position for a long time.

Southgate’s decision to gamble on Luke Shaw’s Euro eligibility and being forced to use right-footer Kieran Trippier instead was a hot topic for fans.

Ben Chilwell is frozen out at Chelsea and needs to make a move and play regular football in January before being considered again; but the positive for the full-back is that he won the 2020-21 Champions League under the incoming Tuchel management.

Although Hall is only 20 years old, he has been excellent for Newcastle United, playing all 11 Premier League games this season, and was given his Chelsea debut by Tuchel at the age of 17.

“I’m not sure if that means anything now, especially considering my game is completely different now than it was back then,” Hall said.

“He was a good person to me, he gave me my debut and without him it wouldn’t have given me the confidence I had when I was young.

“I had some feelings (about being called up) because of the lack of left backs in the team.”

4. Melek Gomes

Lille midfielder Angel Gomes is Carsley’s choice. He was one of the big reasons why the Under-21 Team won the Euros last summer.

However, it will be interesting to see whether Tuchel includes the midfielder in his plans going forward.

Carsley said Gomes controls games with his technique rather than his physicality, and with Tuchel’s preference for football that can sometimes be described as pragmatic, Gomes may be someone who has more to do than others to impress the new manager.