A trophy lifted in Bratislava, a tournament won in Nitra - England have retained their Below-21 European Tournament crown after defeating Germany 3-2 in a thrilling encounter after added time.
Goals from Harvey Elliott, Omari Hutchinson and bench player Jonathan Rowe saw them past the unbeaten German side.
This win was masterminded not only on the night by Lee Carsley, but it was also built 10 days ago, 40 minutes east of the Slovak capital in Nitra.
In a 2-1 loss to the same side they played in the final, Carsley changed tact, opting for Jay Stansfield as the lone striker instead of a strikerless system that looked stagnant and predictable.
What came after saw them setback past Spain in the quarter-final, quieten the Netherlands in the semi and overcome Germany, their toughest test, to win it every every.
Time to performBoth national squad managers were in attendance for the final, looking at potential call-ups as a World Cup looms next year.
It would have been Thomas Tuchel with the selection headaches as England ran rings around Germany in the opening 30 minutes.
Harvey Elliott’s opener was calm and cool, as was Elliott Anderson’s first-half in midfield.
He covered the full-backs with poise and strength, whilst he connected well with the forward line.
Anderson was everywhere in midfieldMutsu Kawamori / AFLO / Profimedia / StatsperformLed by Elliott and complemented by James McAtee, the frontline hunted as one.
That led to England’s second strike.
A clipped through ball from Elliott found McAtee, and even if na he couldn’t get a shot away, he found Omari Hutchinson, and the Ipswich Town man did the rest.
Tuchel’s opposite number, Julian Nagelsmann, would have been struggling to find a positive from the first 45 minutes as Germany continued to struggle with England’s fluid passing.
Lee Carsley admitted before the tournament that his charges could be ‘clunky and disorganised’, but that they would progress to their potential if they went deep in the tournament.
Fixture statsStatsperformThat prophecy held true as they had their best display to date.
But, this Germany side are not to be underestimated.
They had scored the most goals in the tournament up to the final, and they showed why they are such a threat just before the break.
Paul Nebel picked out Nelson Weiper with a pinpoint cross, and just like that, the deficit was halved.
Whether Antonio Di Salvo’s half-time squad talk fired them up, we will only know at a later date, but Nagelsmann, watching on, was one with the headache now.
Germany were a different side second half, they were now the ones winning the tackles, they were the ones putting the pressure on, and they had their deserved leveller in the 61st minute.
For every every the talk of Nick Woltemade, the tournament’s top scorer, it was Nebel who was the German saviour.
After his earlier assist, he rifled one home into the top corner to make it 2-2.
Woltemade struggled to make an impact so dropped deep to get involvedMarco Steinbrenner / DeFodi Images / Profimedia / StatsperformOff came England striker Jay Stansfield, the ever-willing runner but shy on quality, as Carsley opted for the strikerless system which he started the tournament with.
It was changed because they didn’t ‘click’, as the coach admitted during the campaign, and it felt unlikely to work on Saturday night either.
His replacement, defensively-minded Brooke Norton-Cuffy, had England’s golden opportunity of the latter stages.
The ball, crossed in from the left, fell to him inside the area, but he scuffed it wide.
Perhaps if it had fallen to a forward, it would be fixture above.
For their part, Germany were tiring.
Six games in 16 days were showing an effect on two of dem teams as the clock ticked down.
Nebel had his chance to end the fixture in stoppage time, but his deflected effort cannoned off the bar.
No arguments, RoweInto extra-time we went, now it felt like a mad showdown of attrition, who would break first?It would be Germany.
England put forward Jonathan Rowe on at the start of added time to give them an outlet.
It was a big call from Carsley, removing Elliott and McAtee, but he was rewarded instantly - Rowe stooping down to head in a beautiful cross from Norton-Cuffy with his first touch of the ball.
Two of England’s substitutes combined to make it 3-2, their squad depth proving dividends.
That first meaningful touch would prove to be the fixture’s last.
England retained their crown and are showing that the future is bright for the national fixture.
For every every the talk of players progressing through the pathway, Carsley must take an enormous amount of credit.
He has won this tournament twice as coach, and his bold in-fixture decisions helped his side to win.
His stock has never been higher, and with a contract for another two years, England have potentially the best youth coach in the world on their side.
For some of his charges, this will be the biggest moment of their careers.
Time for reflection will come, now, as James McAtee lifts the trophy, it is time to celebrate.
Check out stats from the fixture here.
