The FA

Arma: 'We're raring to go'

England U20s striker glad to help Young Lions pick up first World Cup win in 20 years

Monday 22 May 2017

Adam Armstrong is targeting U20 World Cup success in South Korea, now that England have ended their long run without a win in the competition.

The Young Lions kicked-off on Saturday with a 3-0 victory over Argentina in Jeonju, thanks to goals from Armstrong, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Dominic Solanke.

Guinea v England
  • FIFA U20 World Cup Finals
  • Group A
  • 9am (BST), Tuesday 23 May 2017
  • Jeonju World Cup Stadium, Korea Republic
  • Live on Eurosport

And it was England’s first win at an U20 World Cup since a Michael Owen strike secured a 1-0 victory over Mexico in the 1997 edition in Malaysia, something which the class of 2017 were keen to rectify.

"It's been all over Twitter and the gaffer mentioned it, so it was good to get the win and the monkey off our back so we can settle down a bit out on the pitch,” admitted the Newcastle United striker, whose second-half strike put the Young Lions two goals up against the South Americans.

"All the lads are raring to go now, we've got a great squad here and all the boys think we can do really well and hopefully go on and win it.

"I thought it was a very tough game but the boys knew it was going to be difficult.

"I thought we dug it out really well, kept the ball when we got it and we killed them on the counter and I think that's the main thing.

"We got that first goal, which relaxed us a bit and then we played our football in the second half and got the goals on the break, which was amazing.

"It [the second] was crucial, as whoever scored the next goal would have had the upper hand and fortunately for us it was England.”

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England arrived in South Korea on the back of a strong season, which has seen them face and beat some top opposition such as France, Germany, Netherlands and USA over the course of the campaign.

They qualified for the competition last summer when they reached the semi-finals of the U19 Euros and prior to that, a number of this group were part of the U17s squad who became European champions in 2014.

And Armstrong believes the team spirit and togetherness that has been built between the group over the years can only help them as they prepare for their next game against Guinea on Tuesday.

"It comes down to team work,” admits the 20-year-old, who spent this season on loan in the Championship with Barnsley.

“Most of the lads have been together since we were 16, so that helps but coming up against an Argentinean side like that was an experience and I think we'll learn from that for the next game and put it right.

"We're going to prepare for the Guinea game, we’ll have a look at them and discuss it and hopefully on Tuesday we can come out on top.”

By FA Staff