Euro Under-21 Ch’ship Semi-finals

England v Germany (Tychy, 5pm) Spain v Italy (Krakow, 8pm)

Friday, Krakow, 7.45pm All matches on Sky Sports 1

always massive games,” he added. “It is just a big occasion. There is that feelgood factor about the game. It was like, ‘Yes, we’re playing Germany. Give it everything we’ve got’. Whoever it had been, there’d have been excitement going into the semis. But Germany … it has an extra edge.

“We can take confidence in the games we have played. Some haven’t been easy. We have had to grind out results. When the conditions have been hard, or the pressure on, we have fought through it.

“From the experiences of the last couple of years, like in Toulon [where England won], there is a good feel in the team. We all stick together when times are hard. That is why we are strong.”