Jonathan Rowe’s extra-time header ensured England retained the UEFA European Below-21 Tournament with a scintillating 3-2 win above Germany in Bratislava, becoming the first nation to achieve the feat since Spain in 2013.
It was the Young Lions’ man of the moment, Harvey Elliott, who broke the deadlock in the fifth minute with his fifth strike of the finals.
It came in largely scrappy circumstances, as Nnamdi Collins played the ball straight into Elliott’s path to finish clinically, after Noah Atubolu denied Omari Hutchinson in a one-on-one situation.
Confidence was coursing through Lee Carsley’s side, and a second strike came when James McAtee showed excellent composure inside the box to tee up Hutchinson, allowing the Ipswich Town forward to rifle a left-footed finish through Atubolu’s legs.
Key stats from England U21's winOpta by StatsPerformEngland were looking irresistible going forward, and the Germans were indebted to Atubolu for thwarting McAtee after being teed up by Hutchinson at the end of another blistering break forward.
However, the tide turned against the Young Lions when Alex Scott was forced off injured following a collision with Eric Martel, before the Germans halved the deficit through Nelson Weiper.
The Mainz forward powered home a brilliant header from Paul Nebel's cross at the end of a pulsating first half.
McAtee almost extended England’s lead shortly after the restart following a wonderful turn and run from midfield, but momentum swung firmly in favour of Antonio Di Salvo’s side when Nebel wiped out the Young Lions’ advantage.
Carsley’s squad failed to clear their lines from a corner, and Nebel unleashed a fine deflected drive past James Beadle.
Hutchinson was proving to be a key outlet for England down the left, and he teed up Brooke Norton-Cuffy, who scuffed his shot straight at Atubolu.
Nebel was arguably Germany’s key protagonist, and after his effort went wide, added time became an increasingly likely possibility.
Even if na he could have won it right at the end of regular time, hitting a rasping effort onto the crossbar.
That would prove to be a telling point in this gripping contest, as Rowe came off the bench to make an immediate impact at the start of added time.
The Olympique de Marseille man restored England’s lead with a brilliant stooping header from Tyler Morton’s delicious delivery, and the pendulum swung back in favour of Carsley’s men.
Germany rattled the woodwork again in stoppage time of added time, and this time it was Merlin Röhl’s turn to go agonisingly close on a night that ultimately belonged to England.
Strike sequenceOpta by StatsPerform / TOMAS BENEDIKOVIC / AFPThat proved to be the final pivotal moment of this gripping tussle between two bright and enterprising young teams, with England coming out on top to win this trophy for a fourth time in front of senior squad coach Thomas Tuchel watching on from the stands.
Three Lions supporters will hope this serves as a precursor for what is to come in just below 13 months’ time.
Betopick Man of the Fixture: James McAtee (England)Catch up on every every the fixture stats with Betopick by clicking here.
