It was exactly what Lee Carsley needed. After the chaos of the Wembley loss to Greece on Thursday night and all the subsequent fallout, primarily the uncertainty surrounding his long-term role within the England setup, this was a return to the serene progress of his first camp in September. It was a comfortable victory against a limited Finland team, the whipping boys of this Nations League group, with England not exactly dazzling but doing enough to push the Greece defeat further into the past.
This marked Carsley's third win in four games, following victories against the Republic of Ireland in Dublin and Finland at Wembley. The highlight of the match was when Trent Alexander-Arnold curled in a magnificent free-kick from a position to the left of center, elegantly flicking his right foot to make it 2-0. England had conceded chances in the first half and a significant one after the break, which Finland squandered, but there was always a sense that Carsley's team had more gears to shift if necessary. They didn't need to.
For Jack Grealish, this was his third start under Carsley, and he opened the scoring with a composed finish following a delightful flick from Angel Gomes. Declan Rice added the third goal from a cross by Ollie Watkins, who came on as a substitute, while Finland's late consolation, courtesy of Arttu Hoskonen's header from a corner, was merely a minor annoyance for England.
The Carsley Question loomed large—regarding his future beyond his interim tenure in November. The most likely answer: a return to his previous role with the under-21s. Another major topic was the style of his team. The failed all-out attack against Greece had given the tabloids a field day with headlines like “KamiCarsley,” and it was always going to be more conventional here, especially with Harry Kane back from injury to play as the No 9.
England had dominated Finland at Wembley in Carsley's second game, creating numerous chances, and control was the theme of the night. The plan was to replicate that performance, hence the recall of Gomes alongside Rice in midfield. Gomes was instrumental in unlocking the breakthrough goal, finding a way through Finland's compact 5-4-1 system. The game started a bit too cautiously, with England controlling the tempo rather than pushing with passion.
Grealish injected urgency, bursting off the left to find Alexander-Arnold and dart into the area. Gomes provided a lovely assist, knowing exactly where Grealish was. When he received the ball from Alexander-Arnold between the lines, he neatly turned it through for Grealish, who only had Lukas Hradecky to beat. The Finland goalkeeper had been a formidable presence at Wembley, but Grealish calmly side-footed the ball past him, celebrating with a sucking-thumb gesture for his newborn baby girl. He seemed determined to embrace a more familiar role on the left wing, having previously been played in more central areas by Carsley.
England had their imperfections in the first half, including a few loose passes when attempting to build from the back. Gomes was guilty of one early on, giving the ball away and watching Finland work it to Benjamin Källman, whose shot was blocked by John Stones. On the rebound, Topi Keskinen dragged wide. Twice before the interval, Stones matched stride-for-stride with Keskinen and then Källman, and on both occasions, the Finland player managed to shoot, easily saved by Dean Henderson on his full England debut.
There was also concern about Finland exploiting Alexander-Arnold's blindside, who Carsley played at left-back. When Nikolai Alho did so in the 38th minute, he headed square for Fredrik Jensen, who got past Alexander-Arnold before shooting off-target. Rice had a sniff of a chance for 2-0 on 34 minutes when he took a decent first touch in the area from a floated Jude Bellingham pass and saw Matti Peltola miss his kick. Robert Ivanov quickly closed the door on the close-range shooting opportunity.
Marc Guéhi slid over from left center-half to form a back three when Alexander-Arnold ventured into midfield. Guéhi's defending was commendable: commanding. He won several duels in the first half and always looked capable of doing so. There was a moment of worry when Stones was one-on-one with his man. When Finland moved the ball left for Keskinen in the 57th minute, Stones couldn't prevent the low cross, which ran through for Jensen, who lifted the ball high from point-blank range. It was a significant let-off.
Creatively, it felt like a slog at times for England. Bellingham was often frustrated in his attempts to use his nimble feet to weave through. While Cole Palmer had little impact, Bellingham is not one to hide. He continued to demand the ball, trying his moves, and when he tricked the Finland substitute Leo Walta into stretching for a tackle, he felt the contact and went down for the free-kick. Grealish had promised Alexander-Arnold £500 if he scored. The goal felt priceless to Carsley.
