Soccer

Conventional England happy to do enough against limited Finland

Grealish opens the scoring with cool finish after a lovely flick from Gomes

England's Trent Alexander-Arnold scoring from a free kick during the Nations League match against Finland at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki. Photograph: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP via Getty Images
England's Trent Alexander-Arnold scoring from a free kick during the Nations League match against Finland at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki. Photograph: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP via Getty Images
David Hytner
Sun Oct 13 2024 - 20:24

It was precisely what Lee Carsley needed. After the mayhem of the Wembley defeat against Greece on Thursday night and all of the fallout, chiefly the uncertainty around his longer-term role within the England set-up, this was a return to the tranquil progress of his first camp in September.

It was a stroll against a limited Finland team, the whipping boys of this Nations League group, England not exactly wowing but doing more than enough to position the Greece tie a little further back in the rear-view mirror. It is now three wins out of four for Carsley, after those against Republic of Ireland in Dublin and Finland at Wembley.

The standout moment came when Trent Alexander-Arnold bent home a sumptuous free kick from a position to the left of centre, wafting his right foot like a wand to make it 2-0. England had given up chances in the first-half and a big one after the break, Finland wasting them and there was always the sense that Carsley’s team had higher gears to find if needed. They were not.

Jack Grealish has enjoyed himself under Carsley. This was his third start under him and he opened the scoring with a cool finish after a lovely flick from Angel Gomes. Declan Rice got the third from a cross by Ollie Watkins, on as a substitute, and Finland’s late consolation, Arttu Hoskonen running free to head home from a corner, was little more than a minor irritation for England.

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The Carsley Question was a major theme – in terms of where he will go at the end of his interim tenure in November. Answer: back to his old job with the under-21s. The other big subject had concerned the style of his team. The botched all-out attack against Greece had given the red tops the dream headline – Kami-Carsley – and it was always going to be more conventional here – not only because Harry Kane was back from injury to play as the number 9.

England had dominated against Finland at Wembley in Carsley’s second game, creating so many chances and it was a night when control was the theme. The idea was for more of the same; hence the recall for Gomes alongside Rice in midfield.

It was Gomes who picked the lock for the breakthrough goal, who found a way through Finland’s compact 5-4-1 system. It had all been a little too mannered at the outset, England measured in terms of tempo. They had all of the ball; it was patience over passion.

Grealish injected the urgency, surging off the left to find Alexander-Arnold and dart for the area. What a lovely assist it would be from Gomes. He knew where Grealish was and when he accepted the ball from Alexander-Arnold in between the lines, he turned it neatly through for Grealish, who had only Lukas Hradecky to beat.

The Finland goalkeeper had been a titan at Wembley. Grealish simply opened up his body for the sidefoot finish and the sucking-thumb celebration for his recently born baby girl. He looked determined to embrace a more familiar role on the left wing, having previously been played by Carsley in more central areas.

There were imperfections from England in the first half, including when they attempted to build from the back; a few loose passes. Gomes was guilty of one in the early running at 0-0, giving the ball away and watching Finland work it to Benjamin Källman, John Stones jumping into an important block when he shot. On the rebound, Topi Keskinen dragged wide.

Twice before the interval Stones went stride-for-stride with first Keskinen and then Källman and on both occasions the Finland player was able to unload. Dean Henderson, making his full England debut, saved easily.

There was also a worry about Finland getting in on the blindside of Alexander-Arnold, who Carsley played at left back. When Nikolai Alho did so in the 38th minute he headed square for Fredrik Jensen, who got a break past Alexander-Arnold before lashing off target.

Rice had the 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. Just as quickly as the close-range shooting opportunity presented itself, Robert Ivanov got back to shut the door.

Marc Guehi slid over from left centre half to make a back three when Alexander-Arnold sortied into midfield. But a word for Guehi’s defending: commanding. He won a clutch of duels in the first half, and always looked like doing so.

It was a worry when Stones was one-on-one with his man. When Finland moved the ball left for Keskinen in the 57th minute, Stones could not prevent the low cross. It ran all the way through for Jensen, who lifted high from point-blank range. It was an almighty let-off.

It felt like a slog at times for England in creative terms. Bellingham was often frustrated in his attempts to use his twinkle toes to jink through – while Cole Palmer got little Bellingham is not the type of guy to hide. He continued to demand the ball, to try his moves and when he hoodwinked the Finland substitute, Leo Walta, into stretching in for a tackle, he felt the contact and went down for the free kick. Grealish told Alexander-Arnold he would give him £500 if he scored. The goal felt priceless to Carsley. – Guardian