England Under-21s boss Aidy Boothroyd takes his side into their Euro clash with Slovakia on Monday knowing that only a win will do.
The Young Lions were held to a draw by Sweden in their opening game on Friday, whilst Slovakia top the group following a 2-1 win over hosts Poland.
And Boothroyd admits his team need to treat the two remaining group games as a knock-out competition if they want to harbour hopes of reaching the semi-final.
“We’ve got to win and then win the next one after that, but we need to beat the Slovakians first and they’ve had a brilliant start,” he explained.
“They have a very good team, I’ve been impressed with them and they had a really good game with Poland.
“It’s a tournament where there’s no grace given, you’ve got to hit the ground running and qualify by topping the group so it puts a bit more pressure on you from the start."
With two games to play over the next four days, Boothroyd admitted he’s considering his selection options and has a fully fit group to pick from.
“Everybody is fit, we came through the Sweden game unscathed and everybody is raring to go for Slovakia,” he revealed.
“With the squad that we’ve picked, the depth and the quality in there, it means that a lot of the players before the [Sweden] game could consider themselves unlucky not to have started the first game.
“But I’ve got decisions to make on whether I mix it up and freshen it up a little bit.
“I don’t think we played anywhere as near as well as we can and with it being the first game in the tournament, what was important was that we didn’t lose.
“We need to make sure we’re on the ball and looking to qualify."
The U21s have been boosted over the last two days by the presence of their old boss and Three Lions senior manager Gareth Southgate and his assistant Steve Holland in their base until Tuesday.
And Boothroyd believes it’s encouraging for both him and his squad, who already have FA technical director Dan Ashworth in the camp for the duration of the tournament.
“It’s great for the players that Gareth, Steve and Dan are there because it shows that there is a pathway for the players,” he added.
“If he can take the time out of his schedule to come and watch the U21s then it gives them a boost.
“For me, it’s been very positive and we are very close anyway, but it’s great if I’ve got any questions as he knows all of the players so well.
“It helps me to have that sounding board.”
The Young Lions kick-off against Slovakia at 5pm BST in Kielce, with the game being shown live on Sky Sports.
