England Under-17s put their final preparations for next month’s Euro Elite Round with a second-placed finish in the Algarve Tournament.
Steve Cooper’s squad travelled to Portugal for the annual competition, featuring the host nation, Germany and Netherlands.
And it provided the Young Lions with three hard games as they look ahead to their trip to Bosnia & Herzegovina for the next stage of Euro qualifying next month.
The first match against the hosts ended in a narrow 1-0 defeat against the hosts, but England bounced back two days later with a 3-2 victory over Germany.
England then finished the tournament with a victory, when a first-half goal secured a 1-0 victory over the Dutch.
"The Algarve Tournament serves a number of purposes for us, particularly as it brings the squad back together for the first time since October and it's important to get the players re-connected with England, the DNA and the way we want to play," said Cooper.
"Playing the likes of Portugal, Holland and Germany gives you a good indication of where you're at, not just in terms of the results but what the opponents could be like at that later stage of a tournament.
"Thirdly, it falls in nicely with preparation for the Elite Round next month, whether that be looking at certain players, looking at certain partnerships on the pitch, trying to find game plans and it all falls in nicely for the qualifier.
"So preparation has been good and hopefully we'll be in a really good place come the first game against Czech Republic and we'll be giving it our all to try and qualify for the Finals in Croatia."
The Young Lions will take on hosts Bosnia & Herzegovina, Slovenia and Czech Republic in Bijeljina between 23 and 28 March, knowing that if they come out on top of their group then they will automatically qualify for May’s Euro Finals in Croatia.
