The very best of this country's young talent hope to put a smile back on the face of English football after the disastrous World Cup campaign under Fabio Capello.
England's Under 19 squad will be gunning for glory in the European Championships in France, beginning this Sunday with their first group stage game of the tournament against their Austrian counterparts in the Stade du Hazé, Flers (Normandy).
The UEFA European Under-19 Championship tournament consists of eight teams.
The group stage will be cut-throat - with Austria, England, France and the Netherlands drawn in Group A, and Croatia, Spain, Italy and Portugal in Group B, with the top two progressing to the semi-finals. The winners of those ties contest the final.
In the last eight runnings of this competition (since it became the Under-19's in 2002) it has paid to support the European big guns, the countries who place such pride is their youth systems. Spain have won the tournament four times, France and Italy once apiece, and with a nod to the World Cup just gone, Germany won it two years ago with a team fine tuned in the same youth system which provided the likes of Mesut Ozil and Thomas Muller.
Ukraine may have looked like shock winners last time (they beat England in the final), but the system put in place by Valeri Lobanovsky all those years ago is still churning out terrific players, especially now that the country's FA is focusing on that area with a nod to Euro 2012.
But which of England manager Noel Blake's squad are good enough to make the full step to full international recognition?
The England Under-19 squad for the European Championships to be held between the 18th and the 30th July 2010 in Normandy, France is as follows:
Declan Rudd (Norwich City), James Severn (Derby County), Nathan Baker (Aston Villa), Stephen Caulker (Tottenham), Matthew Briggs (Fulham), Reece Brown (Manchester United), Nathaniel Clyne (Crystal Palace, right), Thomas Cruise (Arsenal), Josh Thompson (Celtic); John Bostock, Dean Parrett, Andros Townsend (all Tottenham), Matthew James (Manchester United), Jacob Mellis (Chelsea), Matthew Phillips (Wycombe); Nathan Delfouneso (Aston Villa), Ryan Donaldson (Newcastle United), Frank Nouble (West Ham).
England have improved in leaps and bounds at this level, and won the Euro Under-17s earlier in the year. However I think that the draw has not done them any favours, and that they'll find at least two of the other sides in their group too good. The Netherlands look rock solid to make it through as group winners, and local support may benefit the French, with Austria also strong contenders.
I'll take Spain to get it right in Group B, and Croatia to more than likely follow them through.
If your having a bet be warned - the top teams are so tightly matched that any of them could win it, which should make for a superb spectacle.
I am going to have a small wager on the Netherlands to go one step further than their senior team did this month, and lift the trophy on the 30th July. My outside tip for glory would lie with the Croatians.
European U19 Championships 2010 - England's Group A fixtures/results/scorers:
Sun 18st July - England U19's 3-2 Austria U19's
England goalscorers: Nouble (13') & (29'), Cruise (53')
England team: Rudd, Briggs (Clyne 54'), James (C), Caulker (Thompson 86'), Baker, Parrett, Delfouneso, Nouble, Bostock (Mellis 77'), Cruise, Brown.
Substitutes not used: Nicholls (GK), Phillips, Noble, Donaldson.
Wed 21st July - England U19's 0-1 The Netherlands U19's
England team: Rudd, Clyne, James (C), Caulker, Baker, Mellis (Donaldson 83'), Parrett, Delfouneso, Nouble, Brown, Phillips (Noble 72').
Substitutes not used: Nicholls (GK), Briggs, Bostock, Cruise, Thompson.
Sat 24th July - England U19's 1-1 France U19's
England goalscorer: Phillips 90'+ 3'
England team: Rudd, Clyne, James (C), Caulker, Mellis (Bostock 78'), Parrett (Noble 74'), Delfouneso, Nouble, Cruise, Thompson, Donaldson (Phillips 76').
Substitutes not used: Nicholls (GK), Briggs, Baker, Brown.
Group A
1 France 7 pts
2 England 4 pts
3 Austria 3 pts
4 Netherlands 3pts
France and England qualify for the semi-finals.
Wed 27th July: Semi-Final: Spain U19's 3-1 England U19's
England goalscorer: Bostock 37'
England team: Rudd, Clyne, James (C), Caulker, Baker (Bostock 18'), Mellis (Noble 59'), Delfouneso, Nouble, Cruise, Thompson, Donaldson (Phillips 71').
Substitutes not used: Nicholls (GK), Brown, Malone.
All the games can be seen on Eurosport.
England's Kids Can Ease World Cup Hangover !
Congratulations to Spain - FIFA 2010 World Cup Winners
Andres Iniesta (right)
struck a dramatic winner four minutes from the end of extra time to give Spain World Cup glory for the first time, and in turn condem the Netherlands to their third defeat in a final, following defeats to the host nations in 1974 and 1978.European 2008 champions Spain deserved their victory, after gradually taking a grip on a tense and bad-tempered contest which saw referee Howard Webb produce 14 yellow cards, including the dismissal of Dutch defender Johnny Heitinga, sent off for a second bookable offence, seven minutes before Iniesta drilled home the only goal of the game.
Teams:
01 Casillas Capt.
03 Pique
05 Puyol (booked)
11 Capdevila (booked)
15 Sergio Ramos (booked)
06 Iniesta (booked)
08 Xavi (booked)
14 Alonso (Fabregas, 87)
16 Busquets
07 Villa (Torres, 105)
18 Pedrito (G Jesus Navas, 60)
02 Van Der Wiel (booked)
03 Heitinga (sent-off)
04 Mathijsen (booked)
05 Van Bronckhorst Capt. (booked) (Braafheid, 105)
08 De Jong (booked) (Van der Vaart, 99)
07 Kuyt (Elia, 70)
09 Van Persie (booked)
11 Robben (booked)
Two Classic World Cup Underachievers in Final Clash - Betting News with Betfred
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The Netherlands looked impressive in beating a lacklustre Uruguay in their semi-final, the 3-2 scoreline making the game seem a lot tighter than it actually was.
As for Spain, despite all their intricate play and crisp passing, it took a bullet header from a set-piece by 'the perm haired old rocker' Carlos Puyol to book their place in Sunday's final.
It was a narrow win over a well-drilled German side, and perhaps the most surprising statistic was that Spain striker David Villa did not get on the score sheet.
Now, the Dutch are 11/4 outsiders in the World Cup Final betting with Betfred, while their Iberian opponents are favourites at 11/10.
In the final it will be a battle for the Golden Boot as Villa and Wesley Sneijder are both level on five goals apiece - with Villa priced at 4/5 to finish the tournament as top goal scorer compared to 9/4 for Sneijder.
While Holland look reliant on Sneijder and Arjen Robben to provide the pace, skill and the goals, it is clear the likes of Mark van Bommel, John Heitinga and Dirk Kuyt are the Dutch work horses and ball winners.
Spain showed against Germany how effective their midfield is. Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets and Alonso all look comfortable knocking the ball around, and the entire side seem able to play a sharp and direct passing game. With Villa up front they also look to have the best striker in the entire competition, and the betting odds suggest he is likely to find the net again.
Last night, Pedro impressed when coming off the bench, and he can offer a lot to the side if he is called upon in the final. However, despite a relatively poor tournament thus far it would be foolish for any football fan to write off the dangers of Fernando Torres, who is 6/1 to score first in the final.
Whatever happens, a new name will be on the trophy after the two great underachievers of world football collide in what should be an open game between two teams who both play attractive, free-flowing and attacking football.
My Tip Of The Weekend:
Both sides look impressive going forward, so 6/4 for there to be more than 2.5 goals in the final looks like good value.
World Cup Final 2010: The Netherlands v Spain - Sunday 11th July, kick-off 7.30pm GMT
By Drew Swainston
(Guest writer from Betfred on behalf of Beer Footy and Birds!)
The Latest World Cup News
Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba's participation in the World Cup is in serious doubt after he broke a bone close to his elbow.
The Chelsea striker, 32, picked up the injury 16 minutes into his side's 2-0 friendly win over Japan yesterday, in Saitama.
However coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said there was still a chance the talismanic Drogba could feature in South Africa.
"He got a bad injury and may have an operation, but he is not out. The doctors can't say any more than that," he told BBC Radio 5 live - BBC Sport
Nigeria suffered a blow just under a week away from the start of the World Cup as they announced that star midfielder John Obi Mikel had been left out of the squad because he did not want to aggravate a knee injury.
The 23-year-old Chelsea star will be replaced in the Nigeria squad by uncapped Brown Ideye, who plays for Sochaux in France - Fifa.com
Brazil have two injury worries in the shape of goalkeeper Julio Cesar and left-back Michel Bastos.
Cesar, 30, missed training for the second consecutive day on Friday and had intensive physiotherapy on the back injury he suffered in Wednesday's 3-0 win against Zimbabwe.
The 26-year-old Bastos damaged his ankle in training.
However, both players are expected to be fit for Brazil's opening fixture against North Korea on the 15th June - BBC Sport
New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert remains bullish about his side's chances at the World Cup despite going down 3-1 to Slovenia (Group opponents of England) in a warm-up match in Maribor on Friday.
Two excellent free-kicks from star Milivoje Novakovic, and a tap-in from Andraz Kirm was enough to see off the challenge from the All Whites, who saw Rory Fallon drive home their solitary goal - Fifa.com
Italy midfielder Andrea Pirlo faces a race against time to be fit for the finals after suffering a calf injury in Thursday's 2-1 friendly defeat to Mexico.
The 31-year-old will miss the World Cup holders' opener against Paraguay on the 14th June and there are fears he could be ruled out of the whole tournament.
The AC Milan playmaker has left the Azzurri's training camp in the Italian Alps to recover at home but is scheduled to fly to South Africa with the team on the 8th June.
"It's an injury which worries me but there's time," said team doctor Enrico Castellacci - BBC Sport
France suffered a shock 1-0 defeat against China in their final warm-up match on Friday.
China, who are ranked 84th in the world, scored the only goal in the friendly on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean in the 68th minute.
France play Uruguay in their opening match on the 11th June and are hoping to avoid a repeat of their group-stage exit during Euro 2008 - BBC Sport
Chile striker Humberto Suazo may be forced to sit out the World Cup if he is deemed to have used a banned substance when trying to overcome injury, according to Chilean newspaper El Mercurio.
Having acquired a hamstring problem that threatened to rule him out of the competition in a friendly against Israel last Sunday, the powerful forward underwent a course of platelet injections, which have been proven to speed up the muscle healing process. These injections, however, may be illegal according to revised WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) rules.
The 29-year-old was in prolific form during the qualifying campaign, registering on 10 occasions to send the Chileans through as the second best team from South America.
Chile is appearing in its first World Cup since 1998, and faces Honduras in its opening Group H game on the 16th June - Goal.com
Holland coach Bert van Marwijk fears Arjen Robben may miss the World Cup after the winger suffered a hamstring injury against Hungary.
Robben appeared as a second-half substitute in today's friendly against Hungary and scored twice in the 6-1 romp before hurting his hamstring in the closing stages.
The Bayern Munich ace will undergo a scan on the problem on Sunday, meaning he will not travel with the rest of the Dutch squad to South Africa this evening.
Van Marwijk is hoping that Robben's injury will not prove serious enough to rule him out of the World Cup, but he is braced for the worst - Skysports.com
Denmark's injury problems are mounting.
Thomas Kahlenberg is set to miss Denmark's World Cup warm-up match against South Africa tomorrow.
The Wolfsburg midfielder is struggling with injury while Jon Dahl Tomasson is also doubtful for the match. The Feyenoord striker was absent from yesterday's training session and was to be assessed today.
Goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen, defender Simon Kjaer and striker Nicklas Bendtner are already missing as Denmark complete their preparations for their Group A matches against Holland, Cameroon and Japan - Fifa.com
Latest Serie A News - Pato offers support to Huntelaar
It is certainly not new news when I tell you that Klass-Jan Huntelaar hasn't really had the impact at AC Milan that many had hoped he would. In fact he has already been linked with a move away from the club as early as January, but team mate Alexandre Pato has come out in support of the under fire striker, as have coach Leonardo and fellow Dutch team-mate Clarence Seedorf.
Pato, the Brazilian striker said of Huntelaar:
"I’m sure he will give much to Milan."
He has failed to hit the ground running at Milan since his arrival in August 2009, and has not scored in any of his eleven appearances for the club, and with three strikers in front of him his opportunities are looking somewhat limited.
There is no doubt the Dutch international knows how to find the back of the net.
At Ajax he scored 76 goals in just 92 appearances, prompting Real Madrid to get out the cheque book in January 2009, and pay £17m to secure his services.
He scored eight times for the 'Galaticos' in twenty appearances, before he joined Italian giants AC Milan for a fee in the region of £12m, just seven months later.
Huntelaar has also scored 14 times in 25 appearances for the Dutch national side (below).
Not helping matters are the rumours that Milan are continually being linked with a move for Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko, who if signed from the Bundesliga club would push the Dutch striker further down the pecking order.However reports coming out of Italy say rivals Juventus are trying to hijack the deal and bring the Bosnian hitman to Turin in January. Huntelaar's fate with Milan is not yet sealed, even though most of the Italian press have already written off the striker.
However things will have to start to change quickly on the pitch for the Dutchman, or Huntelaar may soon find himself back on the transfer list, and looking for his third club in a year.
In October, Huntelaar was linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur and a possible swap deal with Roman Pavlyuchenko during the January transfer window.
The North London side were again reportedly linked with the Dutchman earlier this month, although German side Hamburg are also now thought to be in the race to sign him.
Roll on this weekend where in Serie A, AC Milan and Hunlelaar entertain Cagliari in a league fixture at the San Siro Stadium.
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