Young Lions tamed by Poles
THE RESULT was not what Aidy Boothroyd wanted. There were elements of the performance, too, that will have left him shaking his head. But it is likely there will come a point during the build-up to England’s assault on the Under 21 European Championship this summer when the head coach will think about this night in Bristol and realise he has a group of players who can go all the way. A 1-1 draw with Poland might not send a message across the continent but those who study this friendly will see that England have an abundance of attacking talent that could light up the tournament. Had it not been for bad luck and inspired goalkeeping, they would have flattened their visitors. Poland, roared on by 2,000 travelling supporters, had three chances in the first three minutes as England’s defenders made silly mistakes and struggled to gather their composure. Soon, though, they were on the front foot with Phil Foden pulling strings. He created England’s first chance in the fifth minute with a pass that could have come straight from the repertoire of his Manchester City team-mate David Silva. Dominic Calvert-Lewin (left) should have applied a finish. The Everton striker quickly made amends in the 13th minute as Jay Dasilva invited Reiss Nelson to scurry forward and the Arsenal winger, on loan at Hoffenheim, went around Liverpool goalkeeper Kamil Grabara to set up a chance Calvert-Lewin could not miss. England were pegged back, spectacularly, in the 34th minute when Legia Warsaw forward Sebastian Szymanski bent a 30-yard free-kick into the top corner. After the break, England laid siege to Poland’s goal but the closest they came to a breakthrough was a shot from Jonjoe Kenny that Grabara turned on to the post after some glorious passing. Boothroyd said: ‘I thought it was really satisfying. There were some good lessons overall.’
ENGLAND (4-3-3): Gunn 6; KENNY 8, Tomori 7, Kelly 6, Dasilva 6; Dowell 7 (Choudhury 80min), Maddison 6, Foden 7.5 (Davies 73, 6); Lookman 7 (Barnes 72, 6), Calvert-Lewin 6.5 (Solanke 72, 6), Nelson 7 (Gray 72, 6). Goal: Calvert-Lewin 13. Booked: None. Referee: Lawrence Visser (Belgium) 6.
Attendance: 25,119.