Waddle has watched Peter Taylor's young side throughout their qualifying campaign and believes they can overcome France, who they were paired with in Thursday's draw.

And he says the flair and pace of the side bodes well for the senior squad in the future.

"The Under-21 side has as good a chance as any team in next year's championship," said Waddle, who played 62 games for the Three Lions senior side.

"The game against France will not be easy by any means but Peter Taylor has got them playing very well together.

"The games should be very good because they have similar systems. They have players with a lot of pace and they like to attack. If England keep the form they had against Poland they should do very well.

"I have watched the Under-21s in quite a few games and they have shown they can play very well. They are playing with confidence and will give France a very good game."

Waddle singled out Spurs winger Aaron Lennon, Charlton's Jerome Thomas and Darren Bent for praise in England's campaign to qualify for the tournament next summer.

And he hinted that in the near future they could provide the senior squad with the sort of flair they display for the Under-21s.

But he insisted Sven-Goran Eriksson's Three Lions are not without players that can bring something different to games - like Liverpool striker Peter Crouch, for instance.

He added: "Players like Darren Bent, Aaron Lennon and Jerome Thomas bring a bit of variation to the side. Lennon is only 18 and already playing very, very well. He could play for the Under-21s for the next two or three years then make the step to the full squad.

"He enjoys playing and he brings a quality to the Under-21s that even the full squad doesn't have.

"What the full squad needs is a player like Lennon or Thomas, who can run with the ball and have a lot of pace. They are out-and-out wingers, which we have needed at senior level for some time.

"One player who does bring a bit of variation to the full squad is Peter Crouch. He hasn't scored many goals this season but he brings something different.

"Without him our strikers are pretty similar. We have Michael Owen, Jermain Defoe and Wayne Rooney.

"Crouch has got something different to what England has at the moment. If we are going to progress then you need variation in the side."