Jack Butland urges Midlands fans to support England U21s

The Young Lions play the first leg of their qualification decider at Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Molineux home on Friday 10 October, and captain Butland is promising a special display for a special crowd.

The Stoke City stopper said: "Having played for Birmingham City for most of my career I’m familiar with the area. 

“Wolves is a great club and has a fantastic fan base. We encourage everyone in the area to come out and support the team for this game. 

“It’s always been a popular area for football and to bring an important England international is great for local England fans to come and cheer us on." 

England were in peerless form in their qualifying group, winning nine of their 10 matches, and averaging over three goals per game.

West Bromwich Albion striker Saido Berahino weighed in with eight goals, while former Birmingham City winger Nathan Redmond was a key player for Gareth Southgate’s side.

Saido Berahino, right, has shone for the free-scoring Young Lions

Now they must beat the 'Young Blazers' over two legs, playing first at Molineux and then travelling for the away leg in Vinkovci in eastern Croatia on Tuesday 14 October.

“The lads have been excellent throughout the qualifying campaign," said 21-year-old Butland: "We need to continue this against Croatia in the next two games and secure our place for the finals in Czech Republic next summer. 

“It’s always an honour to play and captain your country at any level and it’s imperative we qualify for the Euros in the summer."

Despite playing for high stakes at Molineux, Butland believes England will look to turn on the style against Croatia.

“We always put pressure on ourselves to perform and we’ll have the play-offs to showcase our talents,” he said.

“We’re very happy with the squad that we’ve got, as we have players in all areas of the pitch that can defend well but we also have lots of threat through the middle and from wide areas. 

“We believe we have strength in all attacking areas and, as a team, we work very hard on the defensive side of things. 

He added: “The whole squad buys into that, so we’re very confident in the ability that we have but it all comes down to the mental side of it and making sure we apply ourselves correctly and we’re confident that we can do that."

Tickets for the first leg at Molineux are on sale now, priced at just £10 and £5 via the Wolves Ticketline on 0871 222 1877 or online here.

There are also ticket deals for groups as FA Charter Standard clubs can book up to 25 tickets here, while other groups can buy up to 15 tickets for a reduced cost here. 

Wolves season ticket holders can pick them up for half price.