The clouds that had shrouded England U21s' training base near Thun lifted to reveal the full beauty of the surrounding Alps – and head coach Gareth Southgate believes his players’ task is fittingly clear later on Saturday.
The Young Lions take on a Switzerland side at Stockhorn Arena in a match Southgate feels will be their toughest of this qualification campaign and he is confident that despite having to bring in a number of new players into the group, his squad are suitably prepared.
Switzerland v England
UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualifying Group 9
Arena Thun, Switzerland
6pm (GMT) 27 March 2016
Live on BT Sport 1
England’s fifth of eight qualification games pits them against a side they had to battle back from a goal down before winning 3-1 in Brighton in November, and a victory here would strengthen their position at the top of Group 9.
Southgate said: “We think this fixture will be the toughest. Norway were a good team, as were Switzerland, so we would expect the next two matches to be pivotal.
“But also it's a really good challenge for the players.
“They are extremely well-organised, very disciplined and they were extremely difficult to break down in Brighton.
“They have some exciting attacking players and a clear system that all the players understand, and have played through their junior teams for club and country.
England Under-21s 3-1 Switzerland
Southgate added: “What's nice about qualification this time is that the level of the group is better.
“Last time we won nine out of 10, and drew the other one, and we were very comfortable and had qualified with three or four games to go.
“That won't happen this time so it is a more realistic challenge.”
Southgate’s team has had more than its fair share of injuries – Duncan Watmore and Nathan Redmond are among those who miss this trip – while Dele Alli and Eric Dier have stepped up to the seniors.
The head coach has been keen for the squad to tell the new faces the story behind the campaign so far.
England Under-21s in training at St. George's Park this week
“We have nine players who weren't with the group for the first fixture and those nine players need to know what happened in Norway, and in the first game against Switzerland," he said.
“That's best coming from the players who were involved and it highlights just how many different players have contributed to key moments in the games.
“The players said that they showed tremendous character to come back from a goal behind, that they stayed patient. That the impact of the players off the bench was huge, with Duncan Watmore's contribution and Chuba [Akpom] scoring.
"If there is a shift in momentum we will have to be able to show self-control when away from home with any hostility."
Southgate added: “We're not expecting that – no two games are the same – but we have to maintain emotional control.”
Lewis Baker in training with England U21s
England have welcomed Swansea City’s Blackburn Rovers loanee Matt Grimes, Newcastle United winger Rolando Aarons and Leicester left-back Ben Chilwell into the squad this week.
Aarons introduced his arrival with an overhead kick in training that brought whoops and gasps from his new team-mates, while Southgate has been impressed by what Chilwell and Grimes have brought to the camp.
“Matt has captained the Under-20s and so has led a lot of the players in this group, Ben Chilwell has captained the U20s this year, so you're adding leaders to the team,” he said.
“It's like any team. It takes a little while. New lads maybe take a step back at first and new leaders emerge.
“You always assess them by the level of noise they make together and that has increased as the week moves on!”
