England manager Lee Carsley names John Stones as England Captain, talks about the Palmer Madueke partnership and his second camp
09/10/2024
Tottenham Hotspurs Training Ground, London, UK
09/10/2024
Tottenham Hotspurs Training Ground, London, UK
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00:00Can we start with Harry Kane? He's not trained with the rest of the players for the last two days.
00:05What are his prospects for the game tomorrow night?
00:08And if he doesn't play, John is sat alongside you.
00:11Will he be your captain against Greece?
00:13Yeah, Harry's nursing an injury, a small knock,
00:18something that we won't take a chance with.
00:20So, you know, it was a great conversation that I was able to have with John last night,
00:26to have that responsibility to ask him to captain the team.
00:31It's a brilliant achievement for John, something that he deserves.
00:36The amount of caps he's got, the experience he's got,
00:39the level of professionalism that he shows within the squad,
00:42the example he is to the younger players, it was a great conversation to have.
00:46John, I'll throw it to you then.
00:47You've been around the England squad now a long time.
00:50What does it mean for you to lead the team out of Wembley tomorrow night and for your family?
00:57Definitely everything that I could have dreamed of as a kid.
01:02More for my family, I think.
01:04To be able to see me walk out as England captain is a special moment.
01:12One that I can't thank Lee enough for, as he said,
01:16a great conversation that we had last night and one that I was a bit speechless in.
01:22But an incredible moment for me, and it's a bit more normal, actually, today.
01:29Everything resumes as normal, the preparation, the training that we've done,
01:36and our focus is the same.
01:38So, yes, to be walking out with the armband on is an absolute honour,
01:44and one that I'll cherish forever.
01:48Lee, can I ask you about Cole Palmer?
01:50He seems to be the man of the moment.
01:52Has he done enough to earn a start now for England?
01:56And I'm just wondering, you mentioned last week about his versatility
02:00and even potentially playing at left-back.
02:02Where do you see his best position?
02:05Where can he be most effective for you?
02:07Yeah, probably not left-back, I think.
02:09No, Cole's in fantastic form.
02:12I think he's carried that into this week.
02:15He's such an exciting player, a player that I've worked with for four or five years now.
02:20So, Cole, along with a lot of the other attacking players,
02:24have put themselves into a great position to start the game tomorrow,
02:27a game that we're really looking forward to against a tough Greece team.
02:31So, hopefully we can get a good performance.
02:36Hi, Lee.
02:37A quick turnaround and not too much time on the training pitch.
02:42So, will that affect the team that we see tomorrow night at Wembley?
02:45No, we've had enough time.
02:47I think we have to bear in mind the amount of games that the players are coming from
02:52and resisting that temptation to do too much with them,
02:56because they're so enthusiastic, especially when they come on camp,
03:02that we have to be careful that we don't overdo it.
03:05So, I think we've got the balance right.
03:07We've had a really good session today.
03:09We've travelled down.
03:10So, I think the lads are now just looking forward to getting to the game tomorrow.
03:14Jack Grealish missed the session this morning.
03:17Will he be available for the match tomorrow?
03:19We'll assess Jack later, yes.
03:20I think Jack just picked up a slight knock yesterday,
03:22but our attitude would be that we wouldn't gamble with any of the players.
03:26I think it's important that we put them first rather than ourselves.
03:31And just a question for John.
03:32John, you know Cole well from his time at Man City.
03:36Obviously, he was important for England at the Euros, scored in the final.
03:40But what he's done over the last year and how he's stepped up for England,
03:43has it surprised you?
03:45No, I was a huge fan of Cole as soon as he came into our first-team set-up.
03:52What he brought to the game, how he played as if he was in the park.
03:59I was sad to see him leave.
04:00Made him aware of that.
04:03But what he's gone on and done is credit to him.
04:07How he's conducted himself, how he's stepped up in big moments.
04:11It's honestly credit to Cole and what he's doing.
04:15He's in a good moment and I hope that continues for as long as possible.
04:19As you mentioned before, what he's done for England, scoring in the final.
04:25He's experienced those big games now and big moments.
04:28Hopefully more of that to come.
04:34Bellingham, Foden, Palmer, will you pick one number 10, do you think?
04:41Or can you see a prospect of them all playing in one team?
04:45How big an issue is that number 10 shirt with so much talent on offer?
04:50I think we've got a lot of options to choose from in terms of our attacking players.
04:56Like I spoke about a couple of days ago,
04:58I think it's just really important that we try and find that balance.
05:00We've got two games, we've got a lot of options and hopefully we can get a really attacking performance tomorrow.
05:08We're very lucky that we've got so many options.
05:11It's something that we have to get that balance right, the combinations right,
05:15and hopefully pick the right team.
05:18Jude could be the player with the second most appearances before the age of 22, already on 36.
05:29Is he undroppable?
05:30What impression have you had of him on his return?
05:33Obviously he's a fantastic player, a good person, really enthusiastic.
05:39I think he seems to take everything in his stride, like a lot of the young players do.
05:43I think it's really important that we don't put too much pressure on these players,
05:46especially the younger ones.
05:48We have to make sure that we support them.
05:50But every time I've come into contact with Jude, he's a really impressive person.
05:58Nani talking about his chemistry on the field with Cole Palmer,
06:02you've watched that over the years.
06:03How much, when you put together a team,
06:06will you take from your experience of playing with a lot of players
06:09and the chemistry that they have with their teams,
06:11especially when you come into situations with so many games like this and so little preparation?
06:17Yes, I think it's important that, in my mind, whenever I pick a team,
06:21that we try and get the players to do as much as they do at their clubs,
06:25in terms of the positions that they're in, especially the areas of the pitch.
06:29That's really important.
06:31And also, like I said about the combinations, players that play together.
06:35Obviously, Cole and Nani have got a good relationship,
06:39but we've seen throughout this week now that the players are capable of adapting quickly to each other,
06:45and you generally get that with good players.
06:47So, we've got a lot of options.
06:52Hi, John.
06:53How are you finding the new era of the England team since Lee took over?
06:59Quite seamless, to be fair, which is credit to Lee and his team.
07:06We've had a great foundation that's been set for quite a few years that's not been easy to do,
07:12and I know that Lee in the background has been a part of that throughout tournaments,
07:17and with the younger lads that have come into the squad as well that have worked with him previously.
07:26He has obviously made a stamp and put his own style on what he wants and standards,
07:33which I think has been refreshing and really good to work with.
07:40And now it's about putting that into play and into practice in the games,
07:45and go out and deliver for not only ourselves,
07:48but for Lee, his staff and the hard work that we do on the training pitch.
07:55Has much changed for you and the other players in terms of how you go about things?
07:59In what respect?
08:01Preparation, tactically, what it's like at St. George's Park?
08:06At St. George's I think it's quite similar.
08:11We've come across each other while we're there with obviously different age groups.
08:16Tactically there's been changes, I think that happens with every manager.
08:22What they see and what they want to bring out of us, try and get the best out of us as players.
08:28Our own philosophies that everyone wants to buy into.
08:33These guys watch so much footage of us at our clubs.
08:37They try to make it as seamless as possible that we're doing things at our clubs
08:42that we can bring into the England squad.
08:46That's not an easy task to do when you've got so many teams and so many different managers
08:51that are telling players different tactics.
08:55It's been trying to make it as simple as possible for us to go out there and express ourselves
09:01and do the things that we're good at.
09:03The main aim is to win games.
09:07Now that this is your second camp in charge,
09:11can we expect to see more of your identity, more of your personality
09:15in how the team plays in the next two games?
09:18I always say it's about the players.
09:22We can only try and put them in areas, give them ideas.
09:25It's ultimately their responsibility then.
09:28We try and do as much as they do at their clubs.
09:33We find that that makes the transition quicker.
09:37Going off the first camp, there were a lot of positives.
09:41As John says, there were a lot of good things in place as well, foundation-wise.
09:46We were in a fortunate position that when we came in,
09:50the squad and the team were in a strong position.
09:53Hopefully, we've tried to build on that.
09:58It's been well documented that some of the players have pre-match rituals,
10:05whether it be putting their right boot on before they're left or having specific meals.
10:10Do you have any superstitions or pre-match rituals that you'll be going through tomorrow before the game?
10:14Me personally?
10:15Yes.
10:18No, I don't think I have.
10:21None at all?
10:21No, not really.
10:23It was different when I was a player.
10:24When I was a player, it was a bit different.
10:27But as a manager, maybe not as much.
10:30You have enough to stress about anyway.
10:31I've got enough to stress about, yes.
10:33Just one for you, John, as well.
10:34Obviously, like Lee said, you're one of the experienced guys on the team now.
10:38It feels like this is almost the third iteration of an England squad that you've been part of.
10:43How refreshing is it seeing the young talent that's coming through?
10:46And are there any specific players in particular that you've taken on specifically in terms of that leadership role?
10:58It's been, in such a short space of time, to get to know people has been really exciting for me.
11:08The lads that I don't know or have never played with before,
11:12the likes of Nonny, Angel, sat down and spoke to them and spent some time with them at breakfast in the gym.
11:22And click straight away and you get to see the real character of people.
11:26And that is credit to them because it's not an easy place to come into when you've got senior players,
11:34players that have been in big games and won a lot in their careers.
11:39And that can be daunting sometimes for young players.
11:44So it's really refreshing and I've been super impressed with everyone that's come in.
11:49Their attitude towards training, towards the players off the pitch and getting to know them has been incredible.
11:56And I'm still building on those connections.
12:00But what we've got so far and the friendships that we've made is something that we've worked hard on over the years.
12:09And we want it to be a comfortable, easy place for new players to come in.
12:14And I think they can definitely say that they've come in and felt welcome.
12:19And which rightly so, because they deserve to be here.
12:23Can we go Simon next and then we'll come here.
12:25Hi Lee, just a couple.
12:27First of all, with Harry Kane, just to clarify, when you said it's not something you can take a chance on,
12:32is that from the start?
12:34It sounds like from the start, but I mean, is that he's not going to be involved at all?
12:37You're looking towards Finland?
12:38Yes, we're not ruling him out yet just of the game, but he won't start the game.
12:43He won't start the game, hopefully, or he'll be in contention then for Sunday.
12:46But again, time will tell.
12:49It's not something I think we should be rushing.
12:52With the withdrawals you had yesterday when the press release came out, it said no further additions were planned,
12:58but you brought in Tino and Curtis Jones today.
13:00So what was the thinking behind that?
13:02Well, Jack went down with a minor knock in training,
13:05which put us down to a couple more lower numbers in terms of
13:12we were still unsure with Harry on where he might be.
13:15So bringing Tino in and Curtis in, they cover a lot of positions between them because of their versatility.
13:20So that was the thinking behind that.
13:25Hi Lee, I know it was touched upon earlier,
13:28but we did see Noni Maduig here in that recent press conference with him and
13:33Cole Palmer both being called up again and their strong sort of link-up at club level with Chelsea.
13:38Is that something you'd want to explore for England?
13:41And could we possibly see that partnership in the next upcoming fixtures?
13:46Yes, obviously Cole was injured in the first camp, so we didn't get a chance to see Cole.
13:51But to see Cole and Noni playing at Chelsea and playing so well is brilliant for us.
13:56It's definitely something that we're looking at.
13:59OK, any further questions?
14:03Hi Lee, I wanted to step away from the game a little bit and look at the squad.
14:10For the first time in what must be a long time, there's no Manchester United players in the squad.
14:14Obviously, Kobe Mane, who had to pull out through injury.
14:17But there's always been this idea of a big six bias or a big four bias that
14:22you have to play for one of the big clubs in order to get into the England squad.
14:26Is that a message in your tenure that you want to dispel?
14:29You want to move away from that?
14:31Maybe players that play for some of the other clubs in the Premier League
14:35that are less heralded can still achieve their England ambitions?
14:39Yes, definitely. I think I've only picked two squads.
14:42So in my short period, you basically want to pick the best players.
14:48A big part of the job is going around and watching players.
14:52So you're really in tune with if they're in form or out of form and how they're doing.
14:57So, yes, I tend to look more at the players rather than the clubs.
15:01But I know what you mean.
15:03We've been fortunate in the past to have so many great Manchester United players,
15:07and maybe seeing a little bit more now that the squad's spread around a little bit more
15:11throughout the leagues and obviously some of the teams abroad as well.
15:15So we've definitely seen that within the pathway as well,
15:18in terms of the younger age groups.
15:21We're definitely trying to pick the best players constantly.
15:25I just wanted to look at the left-back situation.
15:28Obviously, Luke Shaw, who has been a regular in a lot of England squads, is injured.
15:34Ben Chilwell obviously having his own issues at Chelsea out of the first-team squad.
15:39So it leaves you with a lack of recognisable left-backs.
15:42You obviously have players such as Cole Ward that I've covered there,
15:45but he's played very well at centre-back.
15:47And then you've got Livermanto, who's covered at Newcastle.
15:51As I said, looking a little further down the table,
15:54at the likes of Leif Davies and Tyreke Mitchell,
15:57players that play for Crystal Palace and Ipswich,
15:59is there anything that they have to do in order to possibly take that next step
16:03and come into the forts of England contention?
16:07Yes, I think we're constantly monitoring all of the players,
16:10regardless of their position.
16:11They're two players that I've watched a lot of this season.
16:14You've obviously got Lewis Hall as well at Newcastle, who's playing well.
16:19It's not just a seniors' issue in terms of left-back.
16:23We've struggled at times at left-back in the under-21s,
16:26as well as the rest of the pathway.
16:29So I think the academies do a great job producing players.
16:33So the more left-backs we've got available, the easier that's going to be in the long-term.
16:39Thanks.
16:45Eilidh, just in your capacity as England coach, you watch a lot of football.
16:49This season, is there anything that you've noticed that's particularly interesting in English football?
16:52Any tactical trends or bits that stand out to you?
16:56I think it's really difficult.
16:57I'm sure you think this yourself,
17:00that when you're watching games, it's very difficult to work out the formations of what the teams are playing.
17:05We're finding now that players are so versatile and so comfortable in different positions
17:10that it takes you a good five or six minutes to work out what positions the players are playing.
17:17Tottenham is a good example of that.
17:19Watching a lot of their games, they're so good with the rotation,
17:22so difficult to play against.
17:24I like to watch different teams play in terms of abroad as well.
17:30There's a lot of good games that I've watched recently.
17:33It was really good watching the City-Milan game the other day.
17:36That was a really interesting game to watch tactically.
17:39The challenge that our players get playing in the Champions League,
17:43we benefit so much from that from an England perspective.
17:46What did you find interesting about that match?
17:48I just thought the way that Milan build,
17:52it was very difficult to press them at times,
17:54and City working out how to do it,
17:57from a coaching point of view, it was brilliant to watch.
18:06Just house keys, keeping the rest of the team, squad fit,
18:09or have you had any more injury concerns?
18:11No, we're all right, we're all right at the minute.
18:13That would be good news.
18:14OK, thanks for your time.