When Steve McClaren took over as England boss he axed David Beckham, a statement move that would come back to haunt him as he was later forced to recall the then-Real Madrid midfielder.
Lee Carsley was not nearly so bold with his first England squad, not least in part as he is as yet the interim coach.
Nevertheless the 50-year-old has made some notable decisions, omitting several members of the Euro 2024 squad including Kyle Walker, and calling up four uncapped players.
Noni Madueke, Morgan Gibbs-White, Tino Livramento and Angel Gomes are the quartet with England facing a Nations League double-header against the Republic of Ireland and Finland.
Carsley has temporarily stepped up from his role as England Under-21s boss after Gareth Southgate left following July’s Euro 2024 final defeat to Spain.
“It has been a really hectic couple of weeks getting my head around the magnitude of the job, getting around to see as many matches as I can,” Carsley said.
“I thought it was important we put some fresh faces in and put our mark on the squad. The fact Kyle hasn’t played this season would suggest (Manchester) City are phasing him in gently. We have to respect that.”
Harry Maguire and Jack Grealish return having been left out of the final Euro 2024 squad while Jude Bellingham and Luke Shaw miss out through injury and Kieran Trippier has retired from international football.
There was no place for Euro 2024 squad members Ivan Toney, Aaron Ramsdale, Joe Gomez, Lewis Dunk and Adam Wharton.
Carsley insisted he had not thought about his long-term prospects for the England job despite being given the role on an interim basis for the whole autumn period.
“For me that’s not really important, the most important thing is the camp and the games. I just want to do a good job. I don’t worry too much about the future. I just concentrate on today and tomorrow.”
ENGLAND SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Newcastle United).
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Rico Lewis (Manchester City), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City).
Midfielders: Phil Foden (Manchester City), Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Angel Gomes (Lille), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal).
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa).
Source Agencies
