England national under-21 football team

England Under-21
Nickname(s) The Young Lions
Association The Football Association
Head coach Aidy Boothroyd
Most caps James Milner (46)
Top scorer Alan Shearer &
Francis Jeffers (13)
First colours
Second colours
First international
England England U-21 0–0 Wales U-21 Wales
(Molineux, Wolverhampton; 15 December 1976)
Biggest win
England England U-21 9–0 San Marino U-21 San Marino
(New Meadow, Shrewsbury; 19 November 2013)
Biggest defeat
Romania Romania U-21 4–0 England U-21 England
(Ploieşti, Romania; 14 October 1980)
&
England England U-21 0–4 Spain U-21 Spain
(St Andrews, Birmingham; 27 February 2001)
&
Germany Germany U-21 4–0 England U-21 England
(Malmö New Stadium, Malmö; 29 June 2009)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances 13 (first in 1978)
Best result Winners: (2) 1982, 1984

England's national Under-21 football team, also known as England Under-21s or England U21(s), is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team.

This team is for English players aged under 21 at the start of the calendar year in which a two-year European Under-21 Football Championship campaign begins, so some players can remain with the squad until the age of 23. As long as they are eligible, players can play for England at any level, making it possible to play for the U21s, senior side, and again for the U21s, as Jack Butland, Harry Kane, Calum Chambers and John Stones have done recently. It is also possible to play for one country at youth level and another at senior level (providing the player is eligible).

The U-21 team came into existence, following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions, in 1976. A goalless draw in a friendly against Wales at Wolves' Molineux Stadium was England U21s' first result.

England U21s do not have a permanent home. They play in stadia dotted all around England, in an attempt to encourage younger fans in all areas of the country to get behind England. Because of the lower demand compared to the senior national team, smaller grounds can be used. The record attendance for an England U21 match was set on 24 March 2007, when England U21 played Italy U21 in front of a crowd of just under 60,000 at the brand new Wembley Stadium, also a world record attendance for a U21 game.[1] The match was one of the required two "ramp up" events the stadium hosted in order to gain its safety certificate in time for its full-capacity opening for the 2007 FA Cup Final in May.[2][3]

Coaching staff

Head coach

Tenure Head Coach/Manager
1977–1990 England Dave Sexton
1990–1993 England Lawrie McMenemy
1994–1996 England Dave Sexton
1996–1999 England Peter Taylor
1999 England Peter Reid
1999–2001 England Howard Wilkinson
2001–2004 England David Platt
2004–2007 England Peter Taylor
2007–2013 England Stuart Pearce
2013–2016 England Gareth Southgate
2016–[4] England Aidy Boothroyd

The original and most successful coach is Dave Sexton, who led the U21s from 1977 to 1990. In this period he combined his duties with managing the top-flight clubs Manchester United (1977–1981) and Coventry City (1981–1983). After Coventry he took a position within the FA as their first Technical Director, at Lilleshall. He handed over U21 responsibilities to England manager Graham Taylor's assistant Lawrie McMenemy for three years before resuming control from 1994 to 1996.

Peter Taylor took over in 1996 and, although never winning a tournament, his teams had an excellent record. He was controversially removed from the position in early 1999, however, and replaced initially by Peter Reid, who resigned after just one match in charge to dedicate more time to his other job as manager of Sunderland. Howard Wilkinson took over afterwards, yet could only produce four wins in ten competitive matches and quit after a year and a half in charge. David Platt took charge upon his departure from Nottingham Forest. Platt was U21 boss from 2001 to 2004, but had little success before Taylor's return. Taylor left in January 2007, as the senior national manager Steve McClaren wanted the U21s to have a full-time manager. Taylor, at the time, was combining his duties with his role as Crystal Palace boss.

On 1 February 2007, Manchester City manager Stuart Pearce was appointed as head coach on a part-time basis until after the European Championships in the summer of 2007. Nigel Pearson, Newcastle United's assistant manager, agreed to become Pearce's assistant. Their first match in charge was a 2–2 draw against Spain on 6 February 2007 at Derby County's Pride Park Stadium. For the match against Italy Nigel Pearson took charge as Stuart Pearce had club commitments. Steve Wigley assisted Pearson.

Pearce was dismissed as Manchester City manager on 14 May 2007, before the 2007 European Championships, but on 19 July 2007 he was named full-time U21s coach.[5] He remained in the post until June 2013, when it was announced that his contract would not be renewed.[6] On 31 July, the FA announced that England senior manager Roy Hodgson would take charge of an England U21 friendly match against Scotland at Bramall Lane,[7] the match ended in a 6–0 win for Hodgson's side.[8] Former England international Gareth Southgate was made manager of the under-21 team on 22 August.[9]

In September 2016, Southgate was appointed to the temporary position of caretaker manager of the England senior side after the departure of Sam Allardyce. With Southgate overseeing the main team for four games, Aidy Boothroyd, the England under-20 manager, was appointed caretaker manager of the under-21s until Southgate's return.[4]

Other staff

Coaches England Steve Holland[10]
England Brian Eastick
Goalkeeping Coach Wales Martin Thomas[11]
Physiotherapists England Dave Galley[12]
England Derek Wright[12]
Doctor England Dr. Richard Higgins[13]
Masseur England Stewart Welsh
Exercise Scientist England Craig Boyd
Performance Analyst England Keith Mincher
Video Analyst England Mike Baker
Kit Manager England Neil Jones

Competition History

As a European U21 team, England compete for the European Championship, with the finals every odd-numbered year, formerly even-numbered years. There is no Under-21 World Cup, although there is an Under-20 World Cup. For the first six (1978–1988) European Under-21 Football Championships, England did well, getting knocked out in the semi-finals on four occasions and winning the competition in 1982 and 1984. Then, as one might expect with a rapid turnover of players, followed a lean period.

After losing to France in the 1988 semi final, England then failed to qualify for the last eight for five whole campaigns. In the qualifying stages for the 1998 tournament, England won their group, but fate was not on their side. Because there were nine groups, and only eight places, the two group-winning nations with worst records had to play-off to eliminate one of them. England lost the away leg of this extra qualifying round and were eliminated on away goals to Greece. In effect, England finished ninth in the competition despite losing only one of their ten matches.

England qualified for the 2000 finals comfortably. Under the 1996-appointed Peter Taylor England won every match without conceding a goal. But with 3 matches to play, Taylor was replaced in a controversial manner by Howard Wilkinson, who won the next two matches. The three goals conceded in the 3–1 defeat to group runners-up Poland were the only blemish on the team's qualifying record. England got knocked out in the group stage of the European Championship finals in 2000 under Wilkinson.

After enlisting former international star David Platt as manager, England qualified for the 2002 tournament in Switzerland. Again England did poorly in the group stage. Platt's England failed to qualify for the 2004 tournament and he was replaced by the returning Peter Taylor. Taylor's England qualified from the group but lost to a strong France team in a two-legged playoff and failed to qualify for the 2006 tournament.

The next campaign started shortly after the 2006 finals – the qualification stage of the 2007 competition. UEFA decided to shift the tournament forward to avoid a clash with senior tournaments taking place in even-numbered years. The qualification stage was heavily reduced, being completed in a year's less time. In a 3-team qualification group, England qualified over Switzerland and Moldova, and then won a two-legged play-off with Germany to qualify for the finals to be held in the Netherlands. At the tournament, England progressed through to the semi-finals where they led for the majority of the match against the hosts. However, after a late equaliser and a marathon penalty shootout, England were eliminated.

In 2009, England finished as runners-up, losing 4–0 to Germany in the final.

England finished second in their qualifying group for the 2011 championships in Denmark. They subsequently defeated Romania in the play-offs to qualify for the finals tournament, where they were knocked out in the group stage after a 2-1 defeat to the Czech Republic. England also subsequently exited the 2013 and 2015 Finals tournaments at the group stage.

Year Progress
1978 Semi Final
1980 Semi Final
1982 Champions
1984 Champions
1986 Semi Final
1988 Semi Final
1990 Failed to qualify
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000 Group Stage
2002 Group Stage
2004 Failed to qualify
2006
2007 Semi Final
2009 Final
2011 Group Stage
2013 Group Stage
2015 Group Stage
2017

Qualified

Note: The year of the tournament represents the year in which it ends.

Results and fixtures

2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

Qualification

Group stage
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  England 8 6 2 0 20 3 +17 20 Final tournament — 6–1 3–1 3–0 5–0
2  Norway 8 5 1 2 12 10 +2 16 Play-offs 0–1 — 2–1 2–1 2–0
3   Switzerland 8 3 3 2 11 8 +3 12 1–1 1–1 — 3–0 3–1
4  Kazakhstan 8 1 1 6 3 14 −11 4 0–1 0–3 0–1 — 0–0
5  Bosnia and Herzegovina 8 0 3 5 2 13 −11 3 0–0 0–1 0–0 1–2 —
Source: UEFA

Records

Leading appearances

Rank Player Club(s) U-21 Caps
1 James Milner Leeds United, Newcastle United, Aston Villa 46
2 Nathaniel Chalobah Chelsea 34
Nathan Redmond Birmingham City, Norwich City, Southampton 34
4 Tom Huddlestone Derby County, Tottenham Hotspur 33
Fabrice Muamba Birmingham City, Bolton Wanderers 33
6 Michael Mancienne Chelsea, Hamburg 30
7 Scott Carson Leeds United, Liverpool 29
Steven Taylor Newcastle United 29
Danny Rose Tottenham Hotspur 29
10 Jack Butland Birmingham City, Stoke City 28

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s. Those players in bold are still eligible to play for the team at the moment.

Leading goalscorers

Rank Player Club(s) U-21 Goals
1 Alan Shearer Southampton 13
Francis Jeffers Everton, Arsenal 13
3 Saido Berahino West Bromwich Albion 10
4 Darren Bent Ipswich Town, Charlton Athletic 9
Frank Lampard West Ham United 9
James Milner Leeds United, Newcastle United, Aston Villa 9
Nathan Redmond Birmingham City, Norwich City, Southampton 9
8 Harry Kane Tottenham Hotspur 8
Mark Hateley Coventry City, Portsmouth 8
Carl Cort Wimbledon 8
11 Mark Robins Manchester United 7
Shola Ameobi Newcastle United 7
Jermain Defoe West Ham United 7

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s. Those players in bold are still eligible to play for the team at the moment.

Current squad

Players born on or after 1 January 1994 are eligible until the end of the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. Names in italics denote players who have been capped for the senior team.

Caps and goals updated as of 14 November 2016 after the matches against Italy and France.

0#0 Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Jordan Pickford (1994-03-07) 7 March 1994 9 0 England Sunderland
1GK Angus Gunn (1996-01-22) 22 January 1996[14] 4 0 England Manchester City
1GK Jonathan Mitchell (1994-11-24) 24 November 1994 1 0 England Derby County
2DF Calum Chambers (1995-01-20) 20 January 1995 17 0 England Middlesbrough (on loan from Arsenal)
2DF Dominic Iorfa (1995-06-24) 24 June 1995 11 0 England Wolverhampton Wanderers
2DF Kortney Hause (1995-07-16) 16 July 1995 8 0 England Wolverhampton Wanderers
2DF Jack Stephens (1994-01-27) 27 January 1994 7 1 England Southampton
2DF Rob Holding (1995-09-20) 20 September 1995 4 0 England Arsenal
2DF Brendan Galloway (1996-03-17) 17 March 1996 3 0 England West Brom (on loan from Everton)
2DF Alfie Mawson (1994-01-19) 19 January 1994 1 0 England Swansea City
3MF Nathaniel Chalobah (1994-12-12) 12 December 1994 34 1 England Chelsea
3MF Nathan Redmond (1994-03-06) 6 March 1994 34 9 England Southampton
3MF James Ward-Prowse (1994-11-01) 1 November 1994 27 6 England Southampton
3MF Will Hughes (1995-04-07) 7 April 1995 19 2 England Derby County
3MF Ruben Loftus-Cheek (1996-01-23) 23 January 1996 14 4 England Chelsea
3MF Lewis Baker (1995-04-25) 25 April 1995 11 6 Netherlands Vitesse (on loan from Chelsea)
3MF John Swift (1995-06-23) 23 June 1995 8 1 England Reading
3MF Jack Grealish (1995-09-10) 10 September 1995 6 2 England Aston Villa
3MF Isaac Hayden (1995-03-22) 22 March 1995 3 0 England Newcastle United
3MF Harry Winks (1996-02-02) 2 February 1996 1 0 England Tottenham Hotspur
4FW Duncan Watmore (1994-03-08) 8 March 1994 12 3 England Sunderland
4FW Demarai Gray (1996-06-28) 28 June 1996 4 2 England Leicester City
4FW Tammy Abraham (1997-10-02) 2 October 1997 4 2 England Bristol City (on loan from Chelsea)

Recent call ups

The following players have also been called up to the England under-21 squad and remain eligible:

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Freddie Woodman (1997-03-04) 4 March 1997 1 0 England Newcastle United v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 October 2016
GK Christian Walton (1995-11-09) 9 November 1995 1 0 England Luton Town (on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion) v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 October 2016
GK Joe Wildsmith (1995-12-28) 28 December 1995 0 0 England Sheffield Wednesday v.   Switzerland, 26 March 2016[15]
DF Matt Targett (1995-09-08) 8 September 1995 12 0 England Southampton v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 October 2016
DF Ben Chilwell (1996-12-21) 21 December 1996 2 0 England Leicester City v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 October 2016
DF Mason Holgate (1996-10-22) 22 October 1996 1 0 England Everton v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 October 2016
DF Tyias Browning (1994-05-27) 27 May 1994 0 0 England Everton v.   Switzerland, 16 November 2015[16]
DF Baily Cargill (1995-07-05) 5 July 1995 0 0 England Gillingham (on loan from Bournemouth) v.   Switzerland, 16 November 2015[16]
DF Ola Aina (1996-10-08) 8 October 1996[17] 0 0 England Chelsea v.   Switzerland, 16 November 2015[16]
DF Joe Gomez (1997-05-23) 23 May 1997 3 0 England Liverpool v.  Kazakhstan, 13 October 2015[18]
DF John Stones (1994-05-28) 28 May 1994 12 0 England Manchester City 2015 European Championship, 17–30 June 2015
DF Luke Shaw (1995-07-12) 12 July 1995 5 0 England Manchester United v.  Croatia, 14 October 2014
DF Tyler Blackett (1994-04-02) 2 April 1994 1 0 England Reading v.  Moldova, 9 September 2014
MF Jake Forster-Caskey (1994-04-25) 25 April 1994 14 0 England Rotherham United (on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion) v.   Switzerland, 16 November 2015[16]
MF Eric Dier (1994-01-15) 15 January 1994 8 0 England Tottenham Hotspur v.  Kazakhstan, 13 October 2015[18]
MF Dele Alli (1996-04-11) 11 April 1996 2 0 England Tottenham Hotspur v.  Norway, 7 September 2015
MF Josh Onomah (1997-04-27) 27 April 1997 1 1 England Tottenham Hotspur v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 October 2016
MF Nick Powell (1994-03-23) 23 March 1994 2 0 England Wigan Athletic v.  San Marino, 19 November 2013
MF Kasey Palmer (1996-11-09) 9 November 1996 4 0 England Huddersfield Town (on loan from Chelsea) Toulon Tournament, 18–29 May 2016
MF Matt Grimes (1995-07-15) 15 July 1995 4 0 England Leeds United (on loan from Swansea City) Toulon Tournament, 18–29 May 2016
FW Chuba Akpom (1995-10-09) 9 October 1995 4 3 England Arsenal v.   Switzerland, 26 March 2016[15]
FW Jordon Ibe (1995-12-08) 8 December 1995 4 0 England Bournemouth v.   Switzerland, 26 March 2016[15]
FW Dominic Solanke (1997-09-14) 14 September 1997 3 0 England Chelsea v.   Switzerland, 26 March 2016[15]
FW James Wilson (1995-12-01) 1 December 1995 1 1 England Derby County (on loan from Manchester United) v.   Switzerland, 26 March 2016[15]
FW Rolando Aarons (1995-11-16) 16 November 1995 0 0 England Newcastle United v.   Switzerland, 26 March 2016[15]
FW Solly March (1994-07-20) 20 July 1994 2 0 England Brighton & Hove Albion v.   Switzerland, 16 November 2015[16]
FW Raheem Sterling (1994-12-08) 8 December 1994 8 3 England Manchester City v.  San Marino, 19 November 2013
FW Marcus Rashford (1997-10-31) 31 October 1997 1 3 England Manchester United v.  Norway, 6 September 2016
FW Cauley Woodrow (1994-12-02) 2 December 1994 7 2 England Fulham Toulon Tournament, 18–29 May 2016

Past squads

References

  1. ↑ BBC News – Wembley opener attracts thousands
  2. ↑ BBC News – Wembley game 'sold out' in hours
  3. ↑ The Guardian – Early set-back on Wembley's big day
  4. 1 2 Veevers, Nicholas (28 September 2016). "Aidy Boothroyd set to take on England Under-21s position". The Football Association. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  5. ↑ "Pearce named England U21 manager". BBC Sport. 19 July 2007. Retrieved 17 July 2007.
  6. ↑ "Stuart Pearce: England Under-21 boss to leave role". BBC Sport. 18 June 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2013.
  7. ↑ "Roy Hodgson and Ray Lewington to manage England Under-21s against Scotland". thefa.com. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  8. ↑ "England Under-21s thrash Scotland 6-0 in friendly". BBC News. 13 August 2013.
  9. ↑ "Gareth Southgate named England Under-21 boss". BBC News. 22 August 2013.
  10. ↑ "Holland to stay with U21s". http://www.thefa.com/. The Football Association. Retrieved 22 September 2013. External link in |work= (help)
  11. ↑ "Martin Thomas". http://www.thefa.com/. The Football Association. Retrieved 22 September 2013. External link in |work= (help)
  12. 1 2 "Derek's Euro Role". http://www.nufc.co.uk/. Newcastle United. Retrieved 22 September 2013. External link in |work= (help)
  13. ↑ "First team support staff". http://www.swfc.co.uk/. Sheffield Wednesday. Retrieved 22 September 2013. External link in |work= (help)
  14. ↑ "Angus Gunn". Manchester City FC. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Three new faces in England U21s squad to face Switzerland". The Football Association. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 "Baily Cargill and Ben Chilwell called up by England U21s". The Football Association. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  17. ↑ "Ola Aina". Chelsea FC. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  18. 1 2 "England U21s squad named for Kazakhstan clash in Coventry". The Football Association. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
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