The England Under-18s arrived in Moscow on Saturday for their double-header after spending last week at Chelsea’s Cobham training ground.
They enjoyed a final training session on Sunday morning at Dynamo Moscow’s training complex before attending the Russian senior team’s international friendly with Belarus on the evening. But head coach Dewsnip says his side are now “ready” for some action of their own.
Russia v England
International U18 Match
4pm, Monday 8 June 2015
Arena Khimki, Moscow
“We’ve been treated really well by everyone since we arrived in Moscow and they have made a real fuss about us. The hotel can’t do enough for us and we enjoyed a very good session at Dynamo Moscow and were treated again with great respect.
“So now we are ready for our game, and we are just waiting for kick-off,” he told TheFA.com.
In addition to their own games and attending the Russia match, the Young Lions squad will visit Red Square on Tuesday.
Dewsnip is always keen to make sure his get-togethers are as educational off the field as they are on it.
“Without a doubt it’s important. These lads are at the U18s stage now, and within a heartbeat they could be in the first-team.
“So all the experiences we can put in front of them, across all parts of the world and a variety of different cultures, it all goes into their own individual melting pot where they can draw on those experiences when the time comes.
"Hopefully that will happen when they play for England in a World Cup.”
The fixtures in Moscow are the last two of the season for Dewsnip with this squad. He has overseen a largely successful campaign, recording six wins out of seven against nations such as Holland, Switzerland and Poland.
Despite his nine months working with this age-group, the head coach readily admits he is still unsure of his best eleven as he prepares to name his side for the clash on Monday.
Dewsnip's squad trained at Dynamo Moscow's home on Sunday
“All season I have made it clear to the players that we pick all 18, and we’ve kind of had a back-to-back scenario on nearly all of our fixtures, so each player will start at least one of the two matches.
“I think I can honestly say that we haven’t picked our best eleven this season, and hand on heart, I’m not so sure I would know what it is.
“We are very fortunate with this age group that we have a lot of very talented players. The depth of the quality is very impressive and it is something that I know we want to replicate in all the England age groups going forward.”
Newcastle United’s Daniel Barlaser and Leicester City’s Elliott Moore are included in the England set-up for the first time on this trip, and Dewsnip said that they both fully deserve the chance to impress on the international stage.
“Part of my role is to track club games and see who is doing well," he added. "Opportunity knocks this time for Dan and Elliott and they can now show us what they can do.
“They have done really well at their clubs, now it is down to them to show what they can do at international level. Hopefully they will have a very positive experience.”
England face Russia on Monday at 4pm in Arena Khimki. They play the second match of their double-header against the same opposition 48 hours later in the same venue.
