Following the earlier departure of England manager Gareth Southgate, Under 21 gaffer Lee Carsley took on the interim role in early August and the 50 year old former 40 capped Republic of Ireland midfielder had a good start, securing victories over his former international playing side, and Finland in England’s Group 2 clashes.
With the arrival of the month of October, it will soon be time for the next international break of the 2024/25 campaign, and this time around, England will face Greece, and then renew acquaintances with Finland.
With two wins from two under his belt, Carsley is in confident mood going into his second set of international games and on Thursday afternoon he pulled a few surprises as he named his next squad.
Tottenham Hotspur striker Dominic Solanke was a huge surprise as he found himself named in the squad for the first time since he won his only cap way back in November 2017 as a 15 minute substitute in the goalless draw with Brazil at Wembley.
Whilst the 27 year old would not have been a name on the lips of many fans, his call up is arguably justified as he really found his feet during his spell with Bournemouth, and with three goals in six starts for Spurs after they agreed to pay a reported £65 million for his services, he is already beginning to justify their faith in him.
Impressive Aston Villa midfielder Morgan Rogers misses out again, whilst Manchester United centre half Harry Maguire, striker Marcus Rashford, Spurs’ James Madison and Crystal Palace winger Eberechi Eze are also overlooked this time around. 90 capped Manchester City right back Kyle Walker does however return after missing out on Carsley’s first squad selection, and Real Madrid talent Jude Bellingham makes his own return after recovering from his injury.
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Newcastle United)
Defenders: Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), John Stones (Manchester City), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Rico Lewis (Manchester City), Kyle Walker (Manchester City)
Midfielders: Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Angel Gomes (Lille), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
Forwards: Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham)
The biggest question for most fans as we head towards these games will be how Carsley manages his No 10 options given the players selected, and on that front we will simply have to see how England line up.