Harry Kane reveals he was left shocked after Lee Carsley dropped him following Thursday’s 3-0 win against Greece

England captain Harry Kane has admitted he was shocked to be dropped for Thursday’s match in Greece.

Interim head coach Lee Carsley, who takes charge of England for the final time before Thomas Tuchel’s January action against Ireland on Sunday, pulled off a surprise by omitting Kane from his starting XI for the 3-0 win in Athens.

Carsley insists Kane was not dropped but wanted to give Ollie Watkins, who scored the opener, a chance.

But when asked if he was shocked by Carsley’s decision, Kane said: ‘Probably a little bit, when he told me I was like ‘okay’, I had to think about it.

“I wasn’t sad about it, I wasn’t worried about it, I understood where he was coming from and I think that’s part of being captain, as a leader you sometimes have to do things at your own pace.”

Asked if he fears losing his place under Tuchel, who will hold a debriefing with Carsley after the camp, the England captain added: ‘That will certainly be Thomas’ decision. But I think ultimately, from my point of view, I always feel that I was picked for England because of form and credit. It’s not just because I’m England captain.

Harry Kane admits he was a little shocked by Lee Carsley’s decision to drop him on Thursday

Carsley opted to start Ollie Watkins up front in his penultimate game as Three Lions boss

‘Now I’m here. I come back to my best season, last season, individually and this season I also started the year very well.

‘So maybe that could be an argument if I wasn’t playing as well as I have in the recent past, but at the end of the day I feel like I’m at the peak of my game for my club, and that’s ultimately where you get picked . .’

Meanwhile, Carsley has revealed he wanted to select Liverpool striker Harvey Elliott and Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey during his six games in charge.

“It’s just a shame that Harvey Elliott and Jacob Ramsey weren’t ready. They would have been involved.’