Greece stun England in Nations League; Tuchel Named manager as Scotland seek to rebuild

As the second international break began in early October, there was little excitement on the pitch. However, significant developments unfolded off the field.

England started their third Nations League game against Greece, with the tie played on a Thursday night at Wembley. The day prior, social media was filled with the tragic news of Greece international and ex- Sheffield United right back George Baldock’s passing. Whilst the Greek FA did try to postpone the game due to the sudden news, the game was played and ended in a defiant 2-1 win for Greece, with both goals coming from Benfica’s Vangelis Pavlidis. Although, England did lose on the night, the atmosphere around Wembley and the English football community weren’t too disheartened, with the feeling that football won that night. England eventually got back on track on Sunday with a comfortable 3-1 win over Finland at Helsinki’s Olympiastadion. However, the main talking point from England’s international break was the lack of enthusiasm from interim manager Lee Carsley over the potential of taking the job on a permanent basis. Carsley said post-match to ITV ‘I think this job deserves a world class coach who has won trophies. I am still on that path’. Off the back of these comments, it was announced on Tuesday night that England’s next manager would be ex- Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich manager Thomas Tuchel, who has huge experience within knockout football winning major trophies such as the Champions League and the Club World Cup.

Scotland’s international break could actually be seen as quite positive. Despite not winning either of the two games they played against Croatia and Portugal, a late last minute equaliser being ruled out in Zagreb, and a clean sheet at Hampden vs Portugal can certainly be something to build on for Steve Clarke’s side, especially after the dismal summer they had in Germany. An individual positive for Scotland was 18-year-old Ben Doak getting his first two starts for his country, showing some early signs of promise at his young age. A standout Scotsman this season has been Scott McTominay, who has been loving life in Naples with Napoli, providing two goals and an assist in his first five games for the Southern Italian side.

Unsurprisingly, Spain won both of their Nations League games with a 1-0 win over Denmark, and an easy 3-0 win over Serbia at the Estadio El Arcangel. Didier Deschamps also put to bed any background talk of him being sacked with a 4-1 win over Israel, and a Randal Kolo Muani brace to beat Belgium. Germany saw off the Netherlands in a tight clash on Monday night in Munich, with Jamie Leweling scoring on his debut to add another win for Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ex- Everton academy graduate Isaac Price got himself a hat trick against Bulgaria for Northern Ireland, putting them top of their group.

Words by Dylan Grady

Image credit: The Guardian