After the chaos associated with the defeat against Greece, England restored some order on the pitch with a score of 3-1 in the Nations League with a victory over Finland at the Olympic Stadium. The tie was played largely in gray but was memorable for Trent Alexander-Arnold's lively thunderous free-kick.
Off the pitch, however, there is still confusion. Preparations for the match have been overshadowed by increased uncertainty over whether interim coach Lee Carsley, the FA's preferred choice to become Gareth Southgate's permanent successor, even wants the job.
A win is a win but now England appear to have entered a period of inertia and drift until Carsley clarifies his intentions or the FA appoints a new permanent manager to take over from him after the final Nations League games against Greece and the Republic of Ireland next month .
After the failed experiments seen against Greece, Carsley took a more conservative approach this time around and was rewarded with decent performances from Angel Gomes and Jack Grealish in particular.
However, the match seemed to be stranded on an island of uncertainty over the identity of the next manager. England may not be as good as their fans think, but they still have some of the most talented individuals in football.
England returned to winning ways in the Nations League after defeating Finland in Helsinki
Trent Alexander-Arnold scored a stunning free-kick to help the Three Lions pull back
Jack Grealish opened the scoring in the first half before toasting the birth of his daughter
Getting someone to lead them shouldn't be a particularly hard sell, especially with the World Cup on the horizon, but the FA are in the doldrums and clearly don't know whether Carsley will take the job or not. They need to find out soon.
Carsley has resisted regular media invitations to express his interest in taking up the England job permanently, and on the eve of this match some reports suggested he did not want it.
If this is true, it doesn't mean Carsley is a bad coach. Probably the other way around. This suggests that he may not be driven by the same intensity of ambition that characterizes many of his fellow managers and coaches. It suggests a man who has other priorities in life.
However, the situation is far from ideal for the FA. The uncertainty sowed confusion among the hierarchy and among supporters. It also created a power and leadership vacuum in England.
It also halted the team's development following Gareth Southgate's departure. When it looked like Carsley would be the next manager, the otherwise irrelevant Nations League had at least some significance.
However, if Carsley is not in charge for the long term, the style and line-up changes he makes in games like this tie will matter less. If Carsley is to return to coaching the Under-21s, whoever takes over permanently will bring their own ideas for players and systems.
It is also a blow to the idea that the FA would establish a workable succession plan that would reward Carsley for his successful spell coaching the Under-21s as a senior. The path rule for English coaches was suddenly forgotten.
In these circumstances, it was hardly surprising that the match was evenly matched. England soon showed the same weakness that affected their performance against Greece. Gomes' poor pass gave the ball back to the Finns, and when Fredrik Jensen's shot was blocked, the ball fell to Benjamin Kallman, who sent the ball wide.
Declan Rice scored the visitors' third goal after interim manager Lee Carsley had a better evening
Grealish took advantage of a good pass from Angel Gomes before directing the ball into the far corner
Arttu Hoskonen scored one for Finland after sending a cross from a corner kick to the near post
Fredrik Jensen, scared, hit the crossbar from a few meters away
However, England gradually found their rhythm and in the 18th minute Alexander-Arnold fired the ball to Gomes on the edge of the penalty area, Gomes received the ball with his back to goal, sweetly turned away from the marker and played a brilliant pass all the way to Grealish. Grealish opened his body and wrapped the ball around Lukas Hradecky.
England could have doubled their lead when Jude Bellingham found Declan Rice deep in the Finland area after a brilliant pass, but Rice was unable to keep the ball close enough to control to prevent a defender from clearing it.
England were in control of the match but still seemed unsettled. Palmer looked lonely and detached on the right side and barely featured in the game, Kane was anonymous and Gomes appeared to be struggling with an ankle injury.
Finland missed a great opportunity to equalize six minutes before the break. Nikolai Ahlo moved away from Alexander-Arnold after passing into the penalty area and found space to nod to Jensen, but he leaned back and sent his shot high over the crossbar.
The hosts wasted an even better opportunity ten minutes after the break. Topi Keskinen, the Aberdeen striker who has a tattoo of Wayne Rooney fishing on his arm, caught up with John Stones and passed him on the left.
He returned the cross towards Jensen, but from six meters Jensen somehow hit the crossbar again.
Dean Henderson was also forced into action following his late return to the Three Lions
Carsley has won three of four games but has doubts about a permanent job
And then, amid England's stupor, Alexander-Arnold conjured a beautiful bolt of lightning. Bellingham was fouled on the edge of the box 15 minutes from time and Alexander-Arnold sent a curling, dipping and fizzing free-kick over the wall and into the net. The goal was to warm the cold night.
After Kane stood down, Ollie Watkins added some pace and verve to the attack, and his run and cross in the 84th minute allowed Rice to put the game out of England's reach and finish nicely.
Finland salvaged some pride with a late consolation goal, with Arttu Hoskonen heading just wide of the post from a corner three minutes from time.
