England Under-19s to announce squad for Chester test

Friday 21 Feb 2014
Noel Blake will name his squad on Monday

England will announce their squad for the U19s fixture against Turkey on Monday, as Noel Blake's Young Lions continue their preparation for the Elite Round of qualification for the U19s European Championship in July. 

The U19s host Scotland, Ukraine and Belarus in the final round of qualification for the annual summer tournament - staged this year in Hungary - and the fixture against Turkey will be Blake's last chance to have a look at his players before naming the squad for triple-header in May.

The match at Chester will be the second time the two nations have played at U19s level in a year, after a late England penalty proved the difference when the pair met in Telford in March 2013.

Speaking ahead of the game, Blake said if last year's encounter is anything to go by, his squad will be in for quite a test.

He said: "We played Turkey with last season’s U19s in what proved to be a very difficult and intriguing game which we won by a single goal from Calum Chambers. 

"If this Turkey team is anything like last year’s team then we will be in for an interesting evening."

Chester FC

Swansway Chester Stadium 

A number of the U19s that have appeared throughout the international season so far have gone on to feature in the Premier League in recent months - with captain Calum Chambers a regular in the Southampton starting 11, while Liverpool's Jordon Ibe and Norwich City's Josh Murphy have also consistently appeared in the first-team squad for their respective clubs.

The fixture will give local fans the opportunity to see the stars of tomorrow and Chester's business development manager Dave Riche said it will be a privilege to welcome the country's best young players to Swansway. 

He said: "This is an honour for the club to be asked to host the fixture and we are keen to showcase our facilities and prove just how far this fans’ owned club has come in three years to be competing as a venue on the international stage.

"The aim is to pack the ground to capacity on the night and put us firmly back on the footballing map."

Admission is £3 for adults, £1 for children and OAPs and for groups of 15 or more (bookable in advance only) it is 50p admission.

Tickets can be purchased at the ground.

By Jamie Reid Senior Writer