Keith Downing has named his England U19s squad for matches against the Netherlands and Belgium next month.
The Young Lions host the Dutch in an invite-only game at St. George’s Park on Wednesday 5 September before taking on Belgium in Tubize five days later.
Sixteen of the 23-strong group helped England win the FIFA U17 World Cup in India in 2017, including captain Joel Latibeaudiere and Chelsea quartet Marc Guehi, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Tariq Lamptey and George McEachran.
This double-header will act as preparation for England’s first round of Euro qualifiers, in which they face Moldova (on 14 November), Iceland (17 November) and Turkey (20 November).
Downing said: “This is the first time I’ve worked with this group of players, and we’ve got a really strong squad ahead of two tough games. The challenge to this group is to keep winning – to win a Euros after lifting the U17 World Cup is fantastic motivation for them.
“There is such talent across our pathway and the competition is really strong. Our players have to be playing and there is a great opportunity for them this year, in that we have a Euros next summer.
“Our aim this year is to keep developing the players to move up the pathway and take their chance whenever it comes. We know how valuable that these experiences are at youth level for when players break into the U21s and senior teams and it will hold them in good stead.”
Squad:
Curtis Anderson (Manchester City), Max Aarons (Norwich City), Josef Bursik (Hednesford Town, on loan from Stoke City), Billy Crellin (FC United of Manchester, on loan from Fleetwood Town), Timothy Eyoma (Tottenham Hotspur), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Morgan Gibbs-White (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Angel Gomes (Manchester United), Marc Guehi (Chelsea), Rekeem Harper (West Bromwich Albion), Callum Hudson-Odoi (Chelsea), Nya Kirby (Crystal Palace), Tariq Lamptey (Chelsea), Joel Latibeaudiere (Manchester City), Danny Loader (Reading), George McEachran (Chelsea), Jonathan Panzo (Monaco), Ian Poveda-Ocampo (Manchester City), Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Steven Sessegnon (Fulham), Emile Smith Rowe (Arsenal), Jake Vokins (Southampton), Stephen Walker (Middlesbrough).
