Nations League LIVE: Finland – England 1:3 – 5 live comments, live text, team news, match statistics, report

England bounced back from an embarrassing Uefa Nations League defeat to Greece at Wembley but still failed to fully impress as they eventually beat Finland in Helsinki.

Interim coach Lee Carsley made six changes since the debacle against Greece, with goalkeeper Jordan Pickford replaced by Dean Henderson, but England only shone when the pointless side ranked 64th in the world ran out of steam late on.

The recalled Jack Grealish calmed England’s early nerves with a cool finish from Angel Gomes’ superb pass in the 18th minute, and Finland wasted chances to put Carsley and his team under more pressure before Trent Alexander-Arnold’s brilliant free-kick in the Late phase decided the game.

Declan Rice scored from close range with six minutes remaining to ensure a more satisfactory appearance for Carsley and England.

Finland striker Fredrik Jensen was their worst offender as they tried to cause England more grief by missing good opportunities in the first half before somehow converting a shot over from just six yards out after the break.

Alexander-Arnold, playing at left-back in another of Carsley’s breaks against convention, provided a rare moment of quality in a game completely lacking in quality by hitting a sublime free-kick from 25 meters after 74 minutes He shot past Finland goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky.

Finland were already on their feet at this point and Rice snuck into the game for an easy finish with three minutes left.

At least the Finns pleased the 32,000 spectators and received their deserved reward for their valiant efforts when Arttu Hoskonen scored when England failed to deal with a corner.