England Under-17s boss John Peacock was delighted to see his side play to their capabilities during the 3-1 win over Norway on Saturday.
The Young Lions began their Elite Round Qualifying group with victory thanks to strikes from Daniel Wright, Danny Collinge and Layton Ndukwu at Burton Albion’s Pirelli Stadium.
And with a spot at the European Championship in Bulgaria at stake for the group winners, the head coach was pleased with the start his side made to a crucial week.
England 3-1 Norway
European U17 Championship
Elite Qualifying Round
Saturday 21 March
Pirelli Stadium, Burton Albion
He said: “I thought we were really good. They had a game plan, and I don’t think there were any real surprises from the Norwegians, we expected them to play like that and we’ve worked hard on that in training.
“We got off to a great start, then had a bit of a blip when we conceded, but in terms of the reaction it was really positive.”
Peacock continued: “I thought we played really well. The way we passed it about and controlled possession, not forcing things, it was good to see and we produced good football at times.
“That’s what we want to see from this group as they have the capability to do that – it’s just important we build on it.”
Having seen off Norway, England now have two days to prepare for their next qualifier against Slovenia at Chesterfield’s Proact Stadium.
“The players will recover tonight and tomorrow, and we will do a bit of work on the lads that didn’t get on. We will review this game very quickly as we have to move on with the next game only two days away,” added Peacock.
“We will re-group, put all our attentions to Monday and try and get the game plan ready to win at Chesterfield.
“Getting the first win in tournament football is always important and hopefully that takes us on nicely for the next game against Slovenia.”
