Aidy Boothroyd has urged his England players to forget the failures of previous years as they prepare to kick off the Under‑21 European Championship against the holders, Sweden, on Friday.
With a new format that sees 12 nations placed into three groups in a scramble to reach the semi-finals in Poland, the presence of some of the continent’s finest emerging players has added extra lustre to an already prestigious competition. England, who have picked up one victory from nine group-stage matches at the past three tournaments – in Denmark, Israel and the Czech Republic – are among the early favourites despite Boothroyd’s squad possessing only a smattering of Premier League regulars in the absence of Marcus Rashford and Dele Alli.
Boothroyd, the former England Under- 20 manager who took over from Gareth Southgate in September, believes he has a motivated group set on making their own history. “The first people we’ve got to prove it to is ourselves,” he said from England’s base in Kielce, where they will play all three group matches.
“We’ve done a good qualifying, good preparation leading up to it, good work with the clubs and managers and now it’s about making sure we do our bit. I think it’s a good thing there’s no other football on because it means more people are watching and taking an interest in young English players.
“We have some who are playing regularly in the Premier League, played in cup finals, been in promotions, play-off finals, and a staff which has been there before and very experienced. We’re in a good place and just want to get going and put all our game plans into action.”
All 15,000 tickets have sold out for each of England’s group games and a large contingent of Sweden fans descended on this small industrial town 80 miles to the north of Krakow on Thursday. Only a handful of England supporters are expected to make the trip but they will hope to be able to count on the local population’s backing for this game and the second one against Slovakia on Monday, even if the final group match against the hosts may be a different story.
The rest of the teams are spread across five other venues, with star-studded Spain, Portugal, Germany and Italy the sides to beat. As only the group winners are guaranteed a place in the last four, Spain and Portugal must battle it out to win group B along with Serbia, the 2015 Under-20 World Cup winners, and Macedonia, who surprisingly disposed of a talented France squad in qualifying. The runners-up with the best record will also progress. Italy and Germany are in a group with Denmark and the Czech Republic.
Scouts from many of Europe’s major clubs, including six from Borussia Dortmund and four each from Arsenal and Tottenham, will be present as they size up opportunities to pick up a potential bargain. Several of the best players on display are established at the highest level, with particular attention likely to be on Italy’s 18-year-old goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, who has turned down a new contract at Milan and is wanted by Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, having won caps at senior level.
The Milan director Marco Fassone said: “We are disheartened. [Donnarumma’s agent] Mino Raiola has conveyed to me Donnarumma’s decision not to renew. It’s his final decision.”
England have a £30m goalkeeper in their midst after Everton confirmed they had signed Jordan Pickford. Not that the 23-year-old has allowed it to go to his head. “I don’t think he even realises that he is going there …” Boothroyd joked. “He is a coach’s dream. Jordan is not bothered who is he playing for, he is not interested in price tags, all he wants to do is keep the ball out of the net. The way the game is, it is market forces. They have all been taking the mickey out of him, asking if they can borrow a few quid. He just smiles and gets on with it and wants to catch another ball. He is brilliant.”
The presence of the Football Association’s technical director, Dan Ashworth –who was also in South Korea to watch England triumph in the Under-20 World Cup – is an indication of the serious approach the governing body is taking. Southgate also intends to attend at least one of the side’s matches over the next eight days and, aside from the minor irritation of the team hotel being next to the building site for a new water park, Boothroyd is confident everything is in place for a successful tournament.
“They have been really good, they have made sure it is very quiet,” he said. “There is no building work when we are there; we couldn’t ask for any more. I’m not nervous one single bit. This is where you want to be – at the top end of European football for under-21s. It’s what I got the job for and I’m really excited about it.”
