John Peacock has named his squad tasked with securing qualification for this summer’s UEFA European Under-17 Championship.
The England head coach, who guided the Young Lions to Euro success last season, includes 11 of the squad that romped through the First Round Qualifiers with a 100 per cent record back in October, defeating Cyprus, Macedonia and France.Now they face Norway, Slovenia and Romania later this month as they host the Elite Round Qualifiers, with the top two placed sides out of the group of four sealing a place at the showpiece tournament in Bulgaria this coming May.
Paul Woolston, Danny Collinge, Reece Oxford, James Yates, Jay DaSilva, Tom Davies, Will Patching, Marcus Edwards, Nathan Holland, Tom Davies, Christopher Willock, Layton Ndukwu and Lukas Nmecha are those to have already featured during the qualifying campaign, with Leicester City’s Ndukwu the current top scorer with three after his hat-trick in the 4-1 win over Cyprus.
Leeds United goalkeeper William Huffer retains his place after impressing in last month’s Algarve Tournament, as does Easah Suliman, Tayo Edun and Kazaiah Sterling after the Tottenham Hotspur youngster netted on his debut against Portugal.
Sunderland’s Daniel Wright and Chelsea’s Ike Ugbo make up the remainder of the squad after impressing at the Nike International Tournament in November.
The England squad:
Goalkeepers:
Paul Woolston (Newcastle United), Will Huffer (Leeds United)
Defenders:
Danny Collinge (Stuttgart), Reece Oxford (West Ham United), Easah Suliman (Aston Villa), James Yates (Everton), Jay DaSilva (Chelsea), Tayo Edun (Fulham)
Midfielders:
Daniel Wright (Sunderland), Will Patching (Manchester City), Tom Davies (Everton), Marcus Edwards (Tottenham), Nathan Holland (Everton), Christopher Willock (Arsenal)
Forwards:
Layton Ndukwu (Leicester City), Lukas Nmecha (Manchester City), Kazaiah Sterling (Tottenham), Ike Ugbo (Chelsea)
Tickets for England v Norway (3pm, Saturday 21 March) and their final qualifier against Romania (7pm, Thursday 26 March), both held at Burton Albion, are available online at Burtonalbionfc.co.uk/tickets or by calling 01283 565938.