'Worst on the field' - Liverpool star slammed as Alexis Mac Allister struggles in new role but Curtis Jones shines

Curtis Jones took his electrifying form for Liverpool onto the international stage on Thursday as he marked his senior England debut with a stunning backheel goal in the Three Lions’ 3-0 win over Greece. The Reds midfielder lined up in a deeper midfield role in Athens, but that did not stop him from getting forward to wrap up the victory.

The 23-year-old wasn’t the only Liverpool star in international action as the break got underway though. Caoimhin Kelleher, Kostas Tsimikas, Ibrahima Konate and Alexis Mac Allister were also in action for their own respective nations.

And while it was a right to remember for the Irishman, his team-mates endured slightly more difficult nights. The ECHO rounds up how the international Reds got on…

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Curtis Jones

As mentioned, Jones capped off an impressive international debut with an eye-catching goal from Morgan Gibbs-White's cutback to help send England top of their Nations League group.

Speaking to ITV Sport after the final whistle, Jones was thrilled with how the night played out. “When I was out there I was playing free, I had a smile on my face,” he said. “I was enjoying it and I'm happy it came with a goal as well.

“The lads around helped. We've got a team where I can go high, come low, I can get on the ball.

“There are lads there to help and there are also lads who said I could go and Jude stayed back. I had a chance to shoot at their goal and that's what I did. Lucky enough, I scored.”

Named man of the match, he later took to social media to reflect on the occasion. “Dream debut, grateful!!” he wrote. “See you at Wembley”.

An early strike from Ollie Watkins and an Odysseas Vlachodimos own goal had already sent the Three Lions on their way before Jones got his name on the scoresheet. But the Liverpool midfielder was the man whose name was on everyone’s lips, with interim manager Lee Carsley full of praise for his performance when speaking post-match.

“We spoke about it, about players getting opportunities and we've seen that tonight,” he said. “Curtis is an outstanding player, I thought he played really well today.

“Even without his goal, it was an excellent performance and I'm really delighted for him.

“People were speaking about it last night, the inexperience in the squad, but these players play week-in and week-out in the Premier League at a really high level.”

Elsewhere in the England squad, Jarell Quansah was an unused substitute.

England round off the international break on Sunday evening against the Republic of Ireland at Wembley, where Jones will be hoping to retain his place and make his home international debut.

Kostas Tsimikas

While it proved to be a night to remember for Jones in Athens, the same couldn’t be said for Tsimikas on the opposing side.

The left-back was withdrawn after 57 minutes while the scores were still at 1-0. Ta Nea would brand his performance as the ‘worst on the field’, writing: “Given that he plays in Liverpool and you expect something more from him, Kostas Tsimikas didn't help much while he played and also missed the chance in the 30th minute when he had the chance to pass to Masoura, who was waiting alone.”

Travelling to Finland in their final Nations League group game, Greece are already guaranteed a top-two finish.

Alexis Mac Allister

Mac Allister was a member of the Argentina side that suffered a shock 2-1 defeat to Paraguay in their latest 2026 World Cup qualifier despite taking an 11th minute lead.

The midfielder was stationed in a new role for his country, lining up at number 10 in a 4-2-3-1 set-up in a decision that could prove intriguing for Arne Slot when pondering his own midfield selections in the future.

However, he was withdrawn after 64 minutes as Argentina fell to a surprise loss. And he was deemed to be largely anonymous in the clash, with TyC Sport rating his performance as 5/10.

They wrote: “The least positional of the midfielders, he moved all over the pitch. The ball came to him little and he was unable to influence the game, but it was not his fault.”

GOAL also rated Mac Allister as 5/10, as they viewed him to be 'underwhelming as the most forward-thinking midfielder.'

Elsewhere, he was only rated 4/10 by both La Nacion and Ole. The former wrote: "An uncomfortable role. Starting ahead of De Paul and Enzo Fernandez, he had little involvement because the ball did not reach him. The possession circuit was always behind him."

Meanwhile, the latter bemoaned that the Liverpool man was 'very below his level'.

Caoimhin Kelleher

Kelleher was the hero for Ireland as they ran out 1-0 winners over Finland in Dublin, as the Liverpool shot-stopper saved a 77th minute penalty from Joel Pohjanpalo, before following that up by denying Robin Lod from the rebound.

“It’s a big moment,” he admitted after the game about his penalty save. “If you want to be a great goalkeeper you need to step up in big moments and thankfully I was able to do it today and help the team.

“Before he stepped up I just looked at the run-up and kind of went on instinct and thankfully I went the right way. But I thought the team was excellent throughout, we defended really well, so I think credit goes to all the team, not just me.”

He added: “Obviously sometimes it’s a bit of luck as well, going off the post maybe at times it goes in, but I think we defended very well as well.

“Keeping the clean sheet is very important, I think the group sticking together and keeping that clean sheet, seeing out the win, is the most important thing at the moment.

“Thankfully we scored a great goal and then I think we just defended. Other than the penalty there weren't many chances, so there's positives to take from it."

Kelleher earned widespread praise after the game, as manager Heimir Hallgrimsson praised his efforts.

“His all-round performance was really good and I'm so happy, really happy with him,” he said. "Caoimhin, of course, is playing really well at this stage in his career. He's not conceding goals at his club and I hope he's going to bring that to Ireland as well."

Elsewhere, Liverpool legend Ronnie Whelan lauded: “He is a keeper this lad! What a save down low and then he gets a kick in his head for the troubles.

“What a save, he has been brilliant all season for Liverpool. Caoimhin Kelleher has been the difference tonight for me.”

Meanwhile, former Ireland striker Kevin Doyle went further, backing Kelleher to establish himself as one of the two best goalkeepers in the world.

"I think in five or six years he is going to be in the top one or two goalkeepers in the world,” he said. “He's that good at everything he does. He has got everything in the locker. He ticks every box. If he can get himself playing I feel he's going to be the top man."

Ibrahima Konate

Konate helped France keep a clean sheet as he completed the full 90 minutes in their Nations League clash with Israel, but French media were left unimpressed by the 0-0 draw at the Stade de France.

While in superb form for Liverpool this season, it was pointed out how the centre-back was caught out by Raz Shlomo on a free-kick in the first half that could have cost his nation a goal.

RMC Sport rated Konate at 5.5/10, saying: “A small oversight that could have cost the Blues dearly. In the 36th minute, he was beaten behind his back by Raz Shlomo, who fortunately missed his shot at close range after a beautiful Israeli combination on a free kick. Serious on the very rare Israeli incursions the rest of the match.”

Meanwhile, Eurosport gave him a 5/10 rating, also pointing to the Shlomo chance that could have cost France the game. However, they conceded that he also untroubled in the second half.