Greece make history against England to give Lee Carsley a reality check | League of Nations

This is what happens when you play all the funny guys. Lee Carsley made his starting XI with Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer in England's centre-backs, Bugayo Saka and Anthony Gordon on the wings; Dial turned furiously to attack.

This is the kind of exciting team that many England fans crave. And for very long spells, it was a mess. England lacked control in midfield and were porous at the back. Grease and tear them with increasing regularity.

No one could say that Vangelis Pavlidis' goal on 49 minutes was off target, and as the second half wore on, it looked like Greece would be next. They were denied when Pavlidis tapped home following another slick team move, VAR finding him offside and it wasn't the only time Greece had a goal disallowed.

The upside of having so many game-breakers on the pitch is that even when everything is lost – especially the team, there is always a chance in this instance. Carsley threw to Ollie Watkins and as he retreated from the byline, Bellingham ran onto the ball and guided home a fierce curl from the edge of the box.

However, Greece will not be denied a historic first win against England. Pavlidis was the hero in the end, heading home after the England defense got into a terrible mess – and it was far from the first time.

Carsley said on Wednesday that these days he tries to build the formations of teams he sees five or six minutes at the start of matches. The audience did the same with his sequence, which was marked by boldness and an extreme level of fluidity.

The pre-match excitement led to Carsley taking the opportunity to play the false nine with Bellingham, which he did. What was clear early on was that he was asking Foden to operate in a central striking role. Behind them, Declan Rice held in midfield while Palmer had license to push up. Call it 4-2-4 with asterisks.

Trent Alexander-Arnold moved across midfield from the right – sometimes into an inside forward position – with Rico Lewis intent on attacking from left-back. For most of the first half, everything was a bit blurry, the synchronicity elusive. Worse, England were open at the back, vulnerable to Greece's counters, of which there were many. Carsley's side were lucky not to concede midway through the first period and felt the better opposition might have punished them.

Greece suffered a major upset in the tenth minute. Jordan Pickford came out of his area to try to instigate a move, but he couldn't see a pass and he struggled long enough, he called. When he was robbed, Dassos Bagacetas headed into an empty net, only for England to be saved by a brilliant goal-line clearance from the back Levi Colville.

Carsley's team panicked Greece into errors. Even further up the pitch, the visitors were comfortable in possession, playing neat triangles and had other chances early on.

Pavlitis curled wide after Bellingham went upfield with ease and Greece moved the length of the field. Konstantinos Mavropanos had the ball pulled back for offside in the net following a corner following a Pickford lob; Pickford was a lucky boy. And Bagacetas can work as a goalkeeper when he's good.

England had chances of their own before the break, in the 23rd minute when Bellingham raced in behind, shed his defender and teed up an unmarked Palmer. It was the moment a Chelsea player dreams of. Incredibly, he lifted high.

Palmer air-kicked early on and there was a moment when he curled a free-kick off target. Bellingham could point to a curl from the edge of the area that forced Odysseus Vlachotimos to tip over as Anthony Gordon headed high from an Alexander-Arnold cross.

Carsley need to get clear was the dominant feeling of the first half.

Travel fans had hoped a goal would come in honor of England-born Greece international George Baldock, who drowned in his home swimming pool in Athens on Wednesday. The tragedy devastated everyone associated with the Greece team, and there were celebrations for Baldak when Pavlidis scored.

Lazarus Rota sees a shot blocked by John Stones. Now Pavlidis accepted the ball into the area and there were plenty of England shirts around him, but none could make the challenge. Stones was the closest, but Pavlidis was too good for him, planning to complete an error-free course.

England looked stumbling. Rice were booked for a late tackle on Manolis Tsiobis after Dimitrios Korbelis pulled away in the first half, and there was further alarm when Konstantinos Koulierakis turned to square a corner. Bellingham was destroyed. What was going on?

Carsley lost Saga through injury, Noni Maduke came on and he stepped up on the hour, introducing Watkins for Gordon and switching to a 4-2-3-1, with Palmer moving to the right.

Watkins scored with his first touch, shooting high from a Palmer pass, but it was almost Greece.

A balance they would have found difficult to strike. Their first win against England was thoroughly deserved.