England against Greece: John Stones becomes captain of the Three Lions, the injured Harry Kane sits on the bench at the start of the Nations League game | Football News

John Stones will captain England against Greece at Wembley on Thursday, with interim coach Lee Carsley revealing that regular captain Harry Kane will be on the bench due to a “minor injury”.

Kane hobbled during Bayern Munich's final game before the international break and has spent the last two days training away from the main group of England players preparing for the Nations League game. This is the first time since the start of a game that Stones has captained the team.

“Harry has an injury, a little knock, something we don't want to risk,” Carsley said.

“It was a great conversation to have with John when I asked him to captain the team. It's a brilliant achievement, something he deserves, given the number of caps he has, the experience he has, the professionalism he has shown. He is a role model for young players.”

Carsley later confirmed that Kane could still play a role against Greece and would be in contention against Finland on Sunday.

Stones, who will lead the team on his 82nd appearance for his country, said: “This is everything I could have dreamed of as a child. Even more so for my family, seeing me leave as England captain is a special moment.” . One I can't thank Lee enough for. An incredible moment for me.

“Walking out with the armband is an absolute honor and a moment I will remember forever.”

However, Kane continued his individual training program on Wednesday Jack Grealish missed the session with what Carsley called a “light slap.”

“We’ll judge Jack later,” the interim chief said. “Our attitude would be that we would not play with any of the players. It’s important that we put them first and not ourselves.”

England called up Curtis Jones and Tino Livramento to boost training numbers, but there was a strong focus on form in the pre-match press conference Cole Palmer and what role the Chelsea striker could play on Thursday.

“Cole is in fantastic shape. He carried that with him this week,” Carsley said. “Such an exciting player, a player I’ve been working with for four or five years now.

“Cole, along with many other offensive players, created a great starting position for the game.”

Carsley hinted that Palmer could also work with a clubmate Noni Madueke for England this week. “Cole got injured in the first camp but seeing him and Noni playing so well at Chelsea is great for us and definitely something we are looking out for,” he said.

“As far as our attacking players are concerned, we have a lot of options to choose from. It is important that we find this balance. We have a lot of options and hope we can put in a really attacking performance. We have to get the combinations right and choose the right team.

Stones: I was sad when Palmer left City – and I told him so!

John Stones on Cole Palmer's departure from Man City to Chelsea in summer 2023:

“I was a big fan of Cole as soon as he came into our first team. What he brought to the game, how he played like he was in the park.”

“I was sad to see him go and brought it to his attention. But what he did is credit to how he carried himself and stepped up to the plate in big moments. He is in a good moment and I hope it stays that way for as long as possible.

“He’s scored in a final, he’s had those big games and big moments and hopefully there’ll be more of them.”