The Southampton midfielder was named as the third best player in this year’s competition and also scooped the goal of the tournament award for his stunning free-kick against Brazil.
Ward-Prowse took two trophies home from Toulon
But after finding themselves on the end of a 1-0 defeat against Portugal in Sunday’s third-fourth place playoff game, personal accolades fade into insignificance for the 19-year-old.
"The lads are all really disappointed," he told TheFA.com.
"I thought we outplayed Portugal, created more chances and overall, we should have won the game.
"We played really well throughout the tournament but we’re just disappointed with the manner in which we conceded the goals.
"If you look at the goals that we’ve conceded throughout the campaign, in the qualifiers as well, they’ve been soft goals which we need to eradicate and hopefully we won’t concede any more like that."
Ward-Prowse won 'Goal Of The Tournament' for his strike against Brazil
It’s been a good season for Ward-Prowse on a personal level, after establishing himself in the Premier League with Southampton and becoming an ever-present in Gareth Southgate’s England Under-21 side.
And after a busy campaign, Ward-Prowse is ready for a break before coming back for the new term in an even stronger position.
"The experience of playing against top quality opposition will help us massively, and physically it’s been a great challenge as well," he added.
"It’s been a long, hard season and we’re all looking forward to a good break now to recharge the batteries for what comes next."
Watch the full interview with James in the media player above.
