Greece 0-3 England: Player Ratings as Three Lions Lead Nations League Group

15 November 2024 2886
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England made up for their poor defeat at Wembley in October when they defeated Greece 3-0 in Athens on Thursday night.

Their success saw them top their UEFA Nations League group and outsmart a once undefeated Greek side. Lee Carsley headed into the November international break keen to impress in his last month and will have been pleased with the outing in Athens.

Three superb goals made all the difference in the Greek capital.

Fans may have been surprised to see England captain Harry Kane demoted to the substitutes bench when the Three Lions lined up to face Greece, but their worries will have quickly washed away when Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins fired his side ahead in the first 10 minutes.

An excellent run from Jude Bellingham ended with a well-timed pass to Noni Madueke, who found Watkins in the box. The goalscorer made light work of finishing his team's efforts, tapping his strike into the back of the net and gifting his side a lead.

Greece did not back down after seeing their opponents fly into the lead, throwing their players down the pitch in an attempt to generate some attacking play. They came close to scoring a stunning equaliser on the half-hour mark when Liverpool's Konstantinos Tsimikas forced Jordan Pickford into an uncomfortable save - but were unable to offer enough threat to bring the scoreline level.

The game continued to roll on like a chess match, but Greece were unable to earn their way back into the game before the half-time whistle was blown.

When play resumed, England didn't seem to settle for their lead. Bellingham almost etched his name onto the scoresheet when he aimed a miraculous header towards Greece's box. His effort bounced off the post, but acted as a warning sign for the hosts.

Just after an hour had passed, Lee Carsley made a number of substitutes, bringing on Kane, Anthony Gordon and Jarrod Bowen to inject a new lease of life into England's attack.

After a few close calls from Greece, Bellingham finally earned what he'd been searching for all night when he drove down the pitch and fired an effort from the left. His strike bounced off the post and rebounded off of goalkeeper Odisseas Vlachodimos.

The Greek goalkeeper doubled the visitors' lead with just 10 minutes to go.

But, just moments later Curtis Jones made it 3-0 for England, flicking an outrageous backheel into the back of the net after an impressive assist for Morgan Gibbs-White.

It was enough to gift England a victory and secure a round of applause on his debut.


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