Lee Carsley vows to get 'creative' after losing Liam Delap - as Chelsea's £30m man snubs England for Club World Cup

If anyone can answer the question as to what England do in the striker department after Harry Kane, it is probably Lee Carsley.

Not just because in two of his six games in charge of the senior team he started without Kane and not just because he has worked closely with Liam Delap, viewed inside the FA as the most likely successor over the long term.

But also because Carsley can see the way English football is trending towards having a smorgasbord of attacking midfielders, No 10s and wingers, with fewer traditional No 9s coming through.

Kane turns 32 next month and is in no real jeopardy of not being the main man for Thomas Tuchel at the 2026 World Cup.

Ollie Watkins, Dominic Solanke, Ivan Toney and Delap are battling out to be his understudy. They have 27 senior caps between them, 18 of which belong to Watkins.

A lack of emerging options at No 9 is nothing new to Carsley. He started without a recognised striker in the 2-1 defeat by Greece last November with the seniors, while he jetted off to the European Under 21 Championship last night with only one recognised striker, Jay Stansfield, in his 23-man squad.

It is an approach he sees as a creativity exercise, a chance to mix things up just as he did when England won the Euro Under 21 title two years ago with one striker, Cameron Archer, in the group.

Folarin Balogun was declared for Team USA on the eve of the Euros, despite being England eligible and a genuine option to go. This time around, Delap’s £30million switch to Chelsea saw his commitment switch from the Euros to the Club World Cup.

‘We have to be creative with our team selection and the way we try to get the players into the team,’ Carsley said. ‘Obviously, not trying to replace like for like, but trying to play to the players’ strengths, and we can do that.’

In the final preparation game, against Portugal back in March, Carsley let us into his thinking by playing two No 10s off Omari Hutchinson as a false nine. Harvey Elliott, England’s top scorer in qualifying for the Euros, was off the left with 18-year-old Arsenal talent Ethan Nwaneri off the right. Fluidity, pace and trickery was the order of business and similar can be expected in Slovakia.

‘There’s no point in me trying to do what we’ve just done in the past and expect it just to work,’ Carsley said. ‘It’s important we try to get the best out of every player that we’ve got. That will mean playing differently.

‘That’s not the way I want to play, but it’s the way that best suits the players. It’s important we’re creative if we’re going to win major tournaments. If we’re going to win, we have to make sure we’re out of the comfort zone, and I include myself in that.’

As creative as Carsley plans to get — and he gave every impression this Euro title defence could include various systems and various players in new or relatively new roles — there is a striker to fall back on in Stansfield.

Having watched him drop down to League One in a £15million switch to Birmingham before winning promotion, Carsley knows the moment will not be too big for Stansfield if and when he is asked to put the team on his back.

‘Even when Jay plays as a nine, you see him wander out to the left in terms of that inside pocket. That’s a position he can play for us,’ he said. ‘I’ve seen him play wide as well, I’ve seen him play as a nine on his own. He’s had a good season at Birmingham.

‘One of the big things for me is the pressure he’s had to deal with. Paid a lot of money for him, got that promotion, scored a lot of goals. Him bringing that to this squad is a big thing for us.’

No Delap, no nine most likely, but no worries for Carsley.

Those worried for the future of England’s attack may be wise to follow suit in trusting the nouveau ‘creative’ process.