England vs Ireland LIVE: Nations League news and lineups, Jack Grealish and Harry Maguire to start

The big news in the starting XI is that Jack Grealish will start in a more advanced role in midfield, in what is nowadays referred to as the ’10’ position. As in Germany, Rice will sit at the back, while Mainoo will likely look to link the two, although this didn’t quite work at Euro 2024.

Perhaps the use of Grealish, who is naturally more creative than Jude Bellingham, can have the desired effect in attack.

With Mainoo, England could be struggling with the same problem as Erik ten Hag at club level – they don’t really know what role the young player can best play in midfield. He isn’t capable of playing as a lone defensive midfielder and although he looked secure under Rice in Germany, there was a feeling that he might not be the right fit in that system.

Maybe Rice and Mainoo just don’t complement each other well, but it’s worth trying out a more naturally attacking midfielder alongside both of them and seeing if it pays off.

Lee Carsley spoke briefly to ITV ahead of kick-off and said he was “in an incredibly proud position” today.

“This is an incredibly proud position for me and my family. I’m really looking forward to the game. I have so much respect for both national anthems and will be standing there proudly today.”

“It’s a really proud moment, a moment I’m really looking forward to and I can’t wait to play now,” he added.

On the national anthem, he said: “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. As a player, when I made my debut in 1996, 1997 or whenever, I was totally focused on the game and had a hard time getting used to the delay. Usually I spent that time really concentrating on staying focused.”

“And nothing has changed since I became a coach.”

An overview of today’s other games from the official UEFA X-Account.

England go into this match after a disappointing finish to Euro 2024, losing 2-1 to Spain in the final.

The Three Lions’ record in their last five matches is 3 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss, although one of those wins came in extra time against Slovakia and another in a penalty shootout against Switzerland.

The Three Lions’ last win in regular time was in the semi-finals of the 2024 European Championship against the Netherlands, and their only other win in regular time at the tournament came in the opening match against Serbia.

Ireland (1 win, 2 draws, 2 losses) failed to qualify for the summer tournament in Germany, despite beating Hungary 2-1 and losing 3-0 to Portugal in friendlies in June before the start of the competition.

Their three previous games ended in draws against New Zealand and Belgium and a 0-1 defeat against Switzerland.

Much of the criticism England faced during Euro 2024 – and immediately after their defeat to Spain in the final – centred around their lack of a concrete system, which led to ineffectiveness in attack and a defence that was too easy to break through in the final.

Even in games where England had more possession, they created too few significant attacking chances and relied too often on moments of brilliance from their big names, such as Jude Bellingham’s equaliser against Slovakia.

Perhaps Lee Carsley’s main task is to find a way to balance the team while incorporating all the key talent, but with players like Foden and Bellingham unavailable during the autumn international break, Carsley’s main role at the moment is simply to get England to play entertaining football while maintaining control of the ball.

Ireland XI: Kelleher; Coleman, Collins, O’Shea, Brady; Szmodics, Smallbone, Molumby, Doherty; Idah, Ogbene.

Substitutes: Trvers, O’Leary, O’Dowda, Omobamidele, Browne, Ferguson, O’Brien, McAteer, Scales, Knight, Robinson, Parrott.

Tino Livramento, Morgan Gibbs-White, Noni Madueke and Angel Gomes are all on the bench and could make their England debuts in Dublin.

England meets Ireland: Pickford, Alexander-Arnold, Maguire, Guehi, Colwill, Mainoo, Rice, Gordon, Grealish, Saka, Kane

As expected, Lee Carsley has recalled Jack Grealish and Harry Maguire in his first starting eleven as interim coach of the English national team.

Maguire is Marc Guehi’s partner in defence. Trent Alexander-Arnold starts at right-back but can also move into midfield. Levi Colwill is on the left.

Declan Rice will start in midfield after his return to Dublin, along with Kobbie Mainoo. In front of him, Anthony Gordon will play on the left and Buakyo Saka on the right.

Does this give Grealish free roles? Harry Kane is the team captain and starts in attack.