“It was something that we tried for 20 minutes yesterday.”

Lee Carsley made a startling admission about England’s new system after the Three Lions slumped to a 2-1 defeat against Greece.

To the surprise of many, interim boss Carsley decided against replacing the injured Harry Kane with an out-and-out striker for Thursday night’s Nations League clash at Wembley.

Instead of starting with Ollie Watkins or Dominic Solanke, he used three attacking midfielders – Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer – as well as Bukayo Saka and Anthony Gordon to provide width.

It was a bold move from Carsley, especially after England recorded back-to-back wins against Ireland and Finland in September by fielding a recognised striker.

But the experiment backfired as they struggled to create any clear-cut chances against Ivan Jovanovic’s side, who had three goals ruled out for offside before scoring a late winner.

In his post-match interview with ITV, the England boss was asked what was missing in terms of the system they used against Greece.

“We tried something different,” Carsley said. “We tried to overload the midfield and play a little bit differently. It was something that we tried for 20 minutes yesterday. it’s something that we experimented with and it’s disappointing that it didn’t come off.”

He added: “I think it was unrealistic to expect too much. It’s a case of trying again.”

Here’s how fans on social media reacted to Carsley’s comments.

One fan wrote: “There is absolutely no way Lee Carsley just said, on live television, that he based his entire gameplan on something he tried for 20 minutes yesterday. This cant be real life?!?”

A second said: “Staggered Carsley admitted they’d only trained the new system for 20 minutes yesterday. Either incredible arrogance or complete ineptitude.”

A third commented: “Did Lee Carsley just admit they trained this new system for 20 minutes yesterday. And even more bizarrely say it was unrealistic to expect it to click straight away?”

A fourth wrote: “Lee Carsley saying they practiced for 20 minutes with that formation??? The midfielders were tripping over each other. Boring football and a terrible performance. Well done Greece.”

A fifth added: “A really baffling interview with ITV by Carsley, saying they spent 20 minutes on the experiment and questioning if the squad has the talent.”

Image credit: Getty

Carsley and his England side will be hoping to turn things around on Sunday evening, when they come up against Finland at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium.