Dell prepares for Romania

On announcing his squad today, England’s National Coach Graeme Dell was looking forward to what will be a tough challenge: “These two games will be incredibly challenging for the players," he told TheFA.com. 

"The Romanians have made substantial progress in a short period of time with the development of three professional leagues in three years and they showed us when we played them in Manchester how hard they will be to beat.”

He added: “We need these games for our young players to learn to cope with pressure of playing in front of big, passionate crowds and we will use them to develop much of what we have been working on.”

Dell’s young Lions again feature a number of uncapped players as his F30 Player Development Programme continues to take shape and the international opportunities are shared amongst the development group.

Goalkeeper Graham Smith makes his first return to the squad after successfully recovering from a severe hamstring injury sustained in the home game against Romania in December. His presence is bolstered by the experience of Marc Canham and Stephen Gallen.

Eastbourne Borough’s Matty Smart and Slough Town’s Glen Harris are rewarded for their outstanding seasons by being included, having successfully proven their Futsal worth during their F30 development work.