- Greece handed Carsley his first defeat as England caretaker manager in his third match
- Lineker believes Carsley would be judged differently if he were permanent manager
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Gary Lineker believes Lee Carsley is being judged too harshly after England’s shock defeat at the hands of Greece on Thursday night.
The Three Lions interim boss opted to start Jude Bellingham as a false nine, rather than starting a striker, and also selected Anthony Gordon, Bukayo Saka Phil Foden and Cole Palmer in a delightful attacking line-up.
However, the risk was not worth it as Vangelis Pavlidis scored a brace, including an injury-time winner, as Greece claimed a historic victory at Wembley.
Carsley has been criticized for his tactics but Lineker, capped 80 times by England, has come to the 50-year-old’s defence.
“I don’t mind if I do (things) a little (different),” Lineker said in The rest is football. ‘I feel sorry for him. If I were in the job permanently and tried it, you’d say, “Okay.”
Gary Lineker has come to the defense of Lee Carsley, saying he admires how ‘brave’ he is.
Carsley opted to play without a striker against Greece but included three attacking midfielders.
Jude Bellingham (right) played as a false nine while Cole Palmer (left) slotted in behind him.
However, the tactic did not work and Vangelis Pavlidis (left) scored a brace in Greece’s victory.
“Let’s face it, it’s a glorified friendly, it’s not a World Cup qualifier. If I got the permanent job, I’d say it’s fine.
‘I actually admire him for having the balls, the balls, to try something like that when you’re actually trying to get the job because that’s brave and bold. I admire him.’
Carsley made changes after Pavlidis opened the scoring for Greece in the 49th minute, changing the system by bringing on Ollie Watkins and Dominic Solanke.
However, Micah Richards is hopeful that the interim coach will not be discouraged by the defeat and will continue to show bravery in his team selection.
Richards agreed with Lineker, saying, “At least they were brave.” I’m with Gary on that, I don’t mind coaches being brave, especially in a game like today.
“I just hope that against Finland he tries again and then scores some goals and earns their trust.”
Carsley’s offensive approach allowed Greece to break with regularity throughout the match. The visitors found the back of the net five times, but saw goals disallowed on three occasions.
Even though England struggled defensively, Lineker found the style an enjoyable watch and compared it to that of his former team Tottenham Hotspur.
The English defense was open to counterattack and was punished on several occasions.
Lineker enjoyed Carsley’s “entertaining” style and compared it to that of his former team, Spurs.
“I felt sorry for them at the back, they were open to the counterattack, but I don’t care about that,” Lineker added. “I like watching Tottenham. I enjoy watching Tottenham because that’s the type of football I like.
“I want to see entertaining football, I don’t want to see football with the ball passing in the final third. I want to see attacking football.
“I thought it was bold, I thought it was imaginative, but tonight it backfired. I hope in the future it won’t be like that.”
Carsley’s style of play differs from that of former England manager Gareth Southgate, who preferred a more pragmatic approach.
While Southgate led the Three Lions to their first two major finals since their 1966 World Cup victory, Lineker has admitted he prefers Carsley’s methods.
“I would rather see that than sit deep like we did in the summer against equal or not as good teams like Greece. I just thought a lot of players were a little off their game tonight.
‘Overall, the individual performances were not very good. That could be due to the fact that they are in a very relaxed and open formation.”
