Lee Carsley has challenged his England Under-21 players to show they have what it takes to handle the “biggest moments” and get the result needed against Germany to secure a place in the quarter-finals of the European Championship.
Having opened their title defence with a 3-1 win over the Czech Republic, England were then left frustrated by being held to a goalless draw by Slovenia on Sunday.
Germany, meanwhile, have already made sure of progress to the last eight with two victories and would finish top of Group B if they avoid defeat to England in Nitra on Wednesday night.
Carsley hinted he could again freshen up the side, but is confident all of his players have the needed mindset to get at least the point required to book a quarter-final spot against either Spain or Italy.
“We all know what the game is about and how much weight it carries, so we try and remove a bit of that for the players, but they have looked very focused,” Carsley told a press conference.
“We talk about the players having personality on the ball and getting the ball, because it is really important that in the biggest moments of the biggest games, that is what we are trying to prepare these players for.
“(For them) to hopefully go on and have senior careers, then they have got to be able to handle these kind of experiences and situations, so I feel we are capable of that.”
"The objective is to qualify from the group, and we're on course to do that." 🙌
— England (@England) June 16, 2025
Reaction to yesterday's #YoungLions draw at the #U21EURO from Lee Carsley, James McAtee and James Beadle:
Carsley added: “We still want to win the group, so that’s the challenge that we set the players.
“We have shown in patches that we have been good, but we can definitely be better.
“The chances that we have created, but then didn’t take (against Slovenia) is disappointing.
“Maybe if we had come off that game scoring a couple of goals, then we would probably have a different feeling, but I am sure that there is a lot more goals in this team.”
🆚 Slovenia:
— UEFA Men's Youth (@UEFAMensYouth) June 15, 2025
⚽️⚽️⚽️
🆚 Czechia:
⚽️🅰️🅰️
Nick Woltemade is unstoppable 🔥#U21EURO pic.twitter.com/6X4lOx1Vsr
Having beaten Slovenia 3-0 in their opening group game – in which Stuttgart forward Nick Woltemade scored a hat-trick – Germany then again impressed with a 4-2 win over the Czechs.
“They are very well organised and have got some very strong players physically,” Carsley said.
“They are probably a little bit more direct than what we are used to watching from German teams that have gone on in the past, but they are really effective with what they do.”
Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson, who has started both group matches so far, feels England can step up the challenge.
A winning start to #U21EURO for Elliot and England! 🦁 pic.twitter.com/p7Ec9qqWz4
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) June 12, 2025
“We have got to go out there and perform. It is a big game for us,” Anderson, 22, said.
“It is all about trying to get through the group now.
“We have got so much quality in the team and is about showing it on the pitch, so it is about being brave and able to express yourself.”
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