John Stones has been named England captain for Greece, with Harry Kane set to miss out due to injury

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John Stones will take England's lead for the first time at Wembley on Thursday as he captains England in the absence of Harry Kane.

With Kane struggling with injury and unlikely to feature against Greece, interim coach Lee Carsley is hoping England's top goalscorer will be fit for Sunday's game in Helsinki, with the Stones carrying the armband responsibility tomorrow to wear.

“Harry is suffering from an injury, a minor blow,” Carsley said at a news conference Wednesday evening. “We won’t take any risks with that. We're not ruling him out of the game yet, but he won't be in the starting line-up.

“Hopefully he will be in contention on Sunday, but only time will tell. This is not something we should rush into.”

Kane, 31, has not trained this week since playing against England on Monday.

Carsley broke the news to the Stones on Tuesday night that he will captain England against Greece.

“It was a great conversation to have with John last night,” Carsley said. “Asking him to lead the team is a brilliant achievement for John, something he deserves.

“It was a great conversation given the number of appearances he has made, the experience he has, the professionalism he shows in the squad and the example he sets for the younger players.”

Stones said he was “speechless” when Carsley told him at St George's Park on Tuesday.

“It's everything I could have dreamed of as a child and even more so for my family to see me leave as England captain is a special moment,” Stones said. “And one I can’t thank Lee enough for. As he said, it was a great conversation we had last night. One that left me a little speechless, but an incredible moment for me.”

Jack Grealish is also being examined after suffering a “minor knock” on Tuesday.

“Our attitude would be that we wouldn’t play with any of the players,” Carsley said. “I think it’s important that we put them first and not ourselves.”

England continues its Nations League game against Finland on Sunday.

(Eddie Keogh – The FA/The FA via Getty Images)