Carsley loses eight and calls up five for last England squad

England interim manager Lee Carsley gave a first senior call-up to Aston Villa forward Morgan Rogers as one of five additions to his last squad on Monday after eight players pulled out.

The team faces Greece in Athens on Thursday before hosting Ireland three days later. Both games are in the Nations League.

Seven of the players to drop out came from the top four clubs in the Premier League: Levi Colwill and Cole Palmer of Chelsea; Arsenal’s Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka; Manchester City midfielders Phil Foden and Jack Grealish and Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold. The eighth withdrawal was Southampton goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

Rogers was promoted from the Under-21 squad alongside Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford, Newcastle’s Tino Livramento and Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite. Of the quartet only centre-back Branthwaite has a senior England cap.

West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen, who has 12 senior caps, was also added to the squad.

Carsley will return to his role as Under-21 manager after Nations League games, with Thomas Tuchel starting as the new boss in January.

Defeat in Athens would end England’s chances of automatic promotion from the second tier of the Nations League.

Tuchel has signed an 18-month deal that begins on January 1, so will only be an interested observer during this month’s games.

England squad

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson, Jordan Pickford, James Trafford.

Defenders: Marc Guehi, Lewis Hall, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Ezri Konsa, Rico Lewis, Kyle Walker, Jarrad Branthwaite, Tino Livramento.

Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Morgan Gibbs-White, Angel Gomes, Curtis Jones, Morgan Rogers.

Forwards: Anthony Gordon, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Noni Madueke, Dominic Solanke, Ollie Watkins, Jarrod Bowen.