Lee Carsley is fighting to become permanent England manager (Image: Getty)
Lee Carsley came out fighting ahead of a defining game for his chances of becoming England boss. Carsley insisted that England can win major trophies but said they would be “naive” to carry on making the same mistakes.
England have fallen short in their last two Euro finals, prompting Carsley to advocate for a change in strategy to achieve future success.
Carsley's unorthodox approach of omitting a traditional centre forward and loading his starting lineup with attacking players ultimately backfired in Thursday's loss to Greece.
Although this may have harmed his prospects of securing the permanent managerial position, Carsley's comments suggest he remains invested in England's future.
With the Finland match now a must-win, Carsley reflected: "I mean, we've been so close in the past and with a bit more luck or belief on our side it could have been different.
"But as we stand at the minute it's not, so I believe that we could be coming into a phase of that kind of success.
"I have to try something because we've got to put ourselves in a position where we can win. To think that we can just do the same again and expect something different is naive.
"I'm really wary of the fact that the last time we won something was 1966 so we have to have that ability to try something different.
Lee Carsley (Image: Getty)
"It's not put me off. I don't want to sit back in a month's time with regrets that I was safe. This is a great opportunity, not only for myself, but for the rest of the staff and the players to try something different."
Looking ahead, Carsley said: "We're also looking at the bigger picture in terms of the World Cup qualification and then hopefully the World Cup, so that we've got a good understanding of player capabilities.
"I think the past potentially is a good indicator of the future and we've got quite a few players now that are currently in the squad and around the squad that have won a lot with England through the age groups. They've felt that before.
"If you think back of that Germany team and the Spain team that were really successful at the younger age groups that came through, I think potentially we could be coming into a period of that ilk."
Carsley led the England under-21s to success at last year's European Championships and the likes of Anthony Gordon, Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill, Angel Gomes and Noni Madueke have now graduated to the seniors.
That team often played without a traditional centre forward and Carsley regularly tried different formations and tactics. It felt more of a gamble to do it on a bigger stage in front of a sell-out Wembley in the Nations League.
Carsley certainly felt the backlash amid the reaction to losing at home to Greece who, at 48th, were the lowest ranked team to beat England on English soil since FIFA rankings were introduced in 1992.
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But Carsley insisted that he was pleased he got the blame rather than the players after his tactics backfired in spectacular fashion.
Carsley continued: "I could see it being quite easy just to go with the same squad and the same players and not trying as many things.
"Your human instinct is to be safe, to go with things that you're comfortable with but it was important that in this period I felt that I have to be out of my comfort zone, I totally accept all of the criticism.
"I'm glad it was directed towards me and not the players and we move on. I understand the interest and the criticism, which is fine. Having watched the game back two or three times as you can imagine, it's never as bad or as good as you think.
"But ultimately we're judged on the performance and to concede a goal in the 94th minute, it's disappointing. But again, would I change anything? Maybe. Obviously the result I would change."
