England U19s are aiming to seal their place at this summer’s U19 EURO Finals in Armenia, when they host the Elite Qualifying Round this month.
The Young Lions play three games against Czech Republic, Greece and Denmark, with only the nation who finish on top of the four nation group progressing to July’s Finals.
And head coach Keith Downing has named his squad for the fixtures, with a 21-strong group selected to meet up at St. George’s Park next week to begin their preparations.
The majority of the squad who featured in the first qualifying round games last November are involved again, but there is one new face in the shape of Nottingham Forest forward Arvin Appiah, who had previously featured for our U18s this season.
“This is a really tough test for us as only the top team qualifies for this summer’s Euro finals – so we need to be really focused and concentrated on every game,” said Downing.
“We are facing some quality opposition and we know each team will have their own strengths and we need to be prepared for that.
“We have some real experience in our side, as many of our players were part of the team that won the U17 World Cup so we’ll be looking to draw on that in these games.
“It’s really important for our players’ development to give them as many experiences as possible, and to be part of as many finals at each age group as we can.
“It’s that experience that they’ll be able to use when they hopefully progress up into the U21s and eventually the senior team, which is always our overriding aim.
“We’re looking forward to the games and hopefully qualifying for the finals and travelling out to Armenia in the summer.”
England kick-off against the Czechs first on Wednesday 20 March, before they tackle Greece in the second game on Saturday 23 March.
The final game with Denmark takes place on Tuesday 26 March, with all three games being staged at St. George’s Park*.
The Squad
Goalkeepers: Josef Bursik (AFC Telford United, loan from Stoke City), Billy Crellin (Fleetwood Town), Thomas McGill (Basingstoke, loan from Brighton & Hove Albion)
Defenders: Max Aarons (Norwich City), Timothy Eyoma (Totteham Hotspur), Lewis Gibson (Everton), Marc Guehi (Chelsea), Tariq Lamptey (Chelsea), Jonathan Panzo (Monaco), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Steven Sessegnon (Fulham)
Midfielders: Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), Morgan Gibbs-White (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Rekeem Harper (West Bromwich Albion), George McEachran (Chelsea), Felix Nmecha (Manchester City)
Forwards: Arvin Appiah (Nottingham Forest), Angel Gomes (Manchester United), Danny Loader (Reading), Ian Poveda-Ocampo (Manchester City), Stephen Walker (MK Dons, loan from Middlesbrough)
* Invited guests only
