England U18s' Luke Amos no stranger to Moscow

The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder is in Neil Dewsnip’s Young Lions squad for the trip east, which they will depart for on Saturday morning, and has been preparing with his team-mates at Chelsea’s Cobham training ground this week.

Although the Three Lions senior side picked up a 1-0 ‘away’ win in Tblisi, Georgia, against the USSR in 1986, they have not enjoyed victory on Russian soil since a Martin Chivers strike and an own goal secured Sir Alf Ramsey’s side a 2-1 win back in June 1973 – and Amos says he and his colleagues are excited by that stat.

“There’s a record there to be broken, and if we want to be the best players, then we want to destroy that. It is something we are aiming to do, we are a good group and we believe that we can go there and defeat Russia on their own soil,” he told TheFA.com.

Although not many of his fellow squad members will have set foot in Russia before, Amos is something of a seasoned traveller there, with this being his third trip.
He knows how difficult it can be for visitors there, but he believes this team can handle any obstacles and return with two victories in the bag.

“I’ve been twice – to Moscow and St Petersburg. I went for tournaments with Tottenham and it’s different," he explained. 

"The people are very different. Usually wherever you travel in Europe you still have a lot of people that speak English, but there is hardly anyone that does in Russia.

Luke Amos in action for Tottenham Hotspur

“It can make it difficult sometimes to communicate, you have to be bright about how to speak with people such as kitchen staff, hotel workers – it’s a different experience altogether.

“We played against Barcelona, Benfica and Celtic when I went over two years ago, so I don’t have much experience of playing against Russian sides. But I’m going out there to represent my country, and that’s an exciting prospect.

“No-one has really come to me for advice about going there. I don’t think the squad are too concerned as we are fully focused on the football.”

If the England players needed any further incentive ahead of the trip, then the presence of U19s boss Sean O’Driscoll on the trip has certainly created a buzz, with individuals keen to make an impression before stepping-up an age-group next season.

Luke Amos returned to the England fold in March

“That makes it an extra incentive and I want to impress Sean while he is here. It’d be great to not only impress him, but the staff back at Spurs that I know will be watching. I am determined to take this opportunity, and I want to repay the faith Neil has shown in me too.”

Dewsnip recalled Amos to the international fold after a two-year absence for the clashes against Switzerland in March.

Reflecting on his return three months ago, Amos is looking to build-up his own self-confidence and continue to impress in the England shirt.

“Looking back now, I really enjoyed it. I think if I’d had a stinker then I wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much, but I felt I played well. 

He added: "There’s really no better feeling than starting for your country and performing well.

“The quality of players in this group is so good and you have to get up to standard fast. In training it is very sharp, but playing with some many good players around you makes it a really enjoyable experience.

“For me personally, I think I need to be more confident in myself. I have to believe in my ability – I’m here for a reason and that’s because the manager rates me as a player. 

"I need to show that a bit more in my performances and that’s what I’ll be looking to do in training and in the matches – play more confident and show exactly what I’m about.”