Lee Carsley faced the press on Tuesday afternoon after naming his England squad for this month’s Nations League fixtures against Greece and Republic of Ireland.

The interim head coach has named the uncapped Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Lewis Hall and Curtis Jones for his final camp before Thomas Tuchel takes charge in January.

Here is what he had to say in full, as he explained those selections and more.

On Harwood-Bellis, Hall and Jones:

“Taylor and Lewis are both players who have played a lot this season, they can consistently play at a high level. I know them really well. I have a long relationship with Taylor, he was captain when we won the U21s EUROs in 2023, he won promotion with Southampton and now he’s playing every week in the Premier League. He’s an outstanding captain and brilliant example.

“Lewis has taken his time to settle in at Newcastle. He’s high quality, got a great left foot, and I’m looking forward to working with him. There’s such competition at right-back but we haven’t got the same scenario at left-back so it’s a good challenge for Lewis to try and win that spot.

“Curtis is an all-round player and he’s one of the best players I’ve worked with in terms of his ability. He’s showing consistency at a high level, he can score goals and assist, and he’s a player we’ve had a lot of success working with in the past so I’m looking forward to working with him.”

We’re LIVE from St. George’s Park to hear from Lee Carsley on his #ThreeLions squad for November! 🚨 https://t.co/R6sEjyp0sP

— England (@England) November 7, 2024

On calling players up for the first time:

“It's a really big responsibility. You have to earn the right to be in this squad, it’s prestigious, and they’re great phone calls to make. You know their back story. Being able to make those kind of calls has been a privilege and something we don’t take for granted. The challenge is now to stay there. If you’re playing well in the Premier League you have a good chance but once you’re here you have to sustain that performance and compete.”

On delivering bad news to players:

“It’s a real challenge to pick the squad, there are four or five players who will be disappointed not to be involved. That’s a big challenge and the next one will be getting through this weekend so the players will be here fully fit. We know a lot of the squad are carrying injuries and managing them. Hopefully we get a full set and we can pick the strongest team we can. I don’t see this as a legacy for me, we want to get the best results we can and want promotion in the Nations League.”

Your #ThreeLions for their final camp of 2024! 🦁

— England (@England) November 7, 2024

On Morgan Rogers’ form:

“Morgan is a player I’m very aware of and he’s really important to the Under-21s. Sometimes the competition dictates how quickly you move forward and he’s up against some very strong players. At this moment in time he’s crucial for them and hopefully we’ll regain the EUROs title with him as a big part of that next summer.”

On how he’s found life as England head coach:

“I’ve really enjoyed it, it’s been challenging. It’s been a massive honour to have the trust from my bosses at the FA and I think we’ve shown we’re capable of doing it. My priority is to make sure I do a good job every day and it would be a great achievement to finish on a high. We didn’t perform well against Greece last month but responded well in the second game. I hopefully hand over a strong group of players capable of winning a major tournament. I’ll be back with the Under-21s, which includes support for the senior team.

“It's made myself and my staff a lot better. The experience and opportunity we’ve had can only help. This has been right out of the comfort zone in terms of the ability of the players, magnitude of the games and scrutiny of the job. It’s something we’re stronger for. It wasn’t a great experience losing to Greece at Wembley and you doubt yourself after making the changes we did but we have confidence we’re going in the right direction.”