• The starting XI for the England U21′s 2-0 victory over Spain in the 2009 Euro Championship

With one of the two World Cup finalists now set for this coming Sunday, England fans will now get the distinct pleasure of picking another European rival to root for as the brilliant Orange face either Spain or Germany for the 2010 accolades.

In England related news however, skipper and Liverpool old boy Steven Gerrard has spoke of his desire to not quit England and vows to make himself available for his country as he nears his thirties. “There is no way I want the disappointment of the Germany game to be my last for England“, Gerrard told Liverpool’s official website.

With such a disappointing performance from the so-called golden generation of English football conveniently in the rear view, Gerrard went on to speak of his understanding that there will be changes in the squad as England look forward to Euro 2012 qualification. But who gets the ax and what new blood get their chance?

It looks as if Fabio Capello will have to make some tough decisions as England look to the future because there hasn’t been an England player to announce international retirement as of yet. Only Gerrard’s Liverpool team mate Jamie Carragher who came out of retirement for one last go ’round has announced he’ll no longer be available – an obvious move for all involved.

Further changes to the current England squad bring up the age old question of the depth of the talent pool in England and whether or not there are enough viable candidates to make the step to the national team. Also on debate here is the question of management v personnel. Written about time and time again is the “who’s to blame” question regarding the England debacle, but regardless of where you stand on the debate, here are a few young players that I believe Capello will want to incorporate into the squad for Euro 2012 qualification in one form or another.

• Adam Johnson – Not breaking any new ground here. Should have been in South Africa because of his poise and effective play on the wing. He’s a young player when it comes to Premier League experience, but Johnson made a big impact for Manchester City last season as soon as he was afforded the chance. Excellent crosser of the ball and a player who deserves a shot at the senior squad ASAP in order to gain valuable experience.
• Michael Mancienne – has stared for the U21′s in tournaments past and is one of the most experienced at that level. The Chelsea man currently on loan at Wolves saw first team football at Molineux at both center back and defensive midfield during the 09-2010 season. Not a bad shout for replacing Rio Ferdinand in both looks and style of play, Mancienne should be considered as at least a squad player in Mr. Capello’s plan very soon as new blood is needed to soon replace an aging back line.
• Lee Cattermole – the midfield hard man has now spent five years in the Premier League making over 120 appearances but has only managed 16 caps for the U21′s. Cattermole’s potential in midfield displays what this England team lacked at the World Cup, an effective tackler of the ball with pace who can protect the back four. Cattermole is a hard worker in the vein of a Nigel de Jong or Javier Mascherano. His desire to get stuck in greatly reminds me of Roy Keane.
• Jack Rodwell – another obvious choice, strong and physical. The Everton youngster made his Premier League debut when he was 16, 2 days short of turning 17. Yet to really settle on his strongest position – central defense, defensive midfielder, or a more attacking midfield role, Rodwell seems to impress wherever he’s employed for Everton. At only 19, Rodwell has made 11 appearances for the U21′s, but possesses the tools needed to excel in the Premier League and possibly at the international level if brought up soon to gain much needed experience.
• Jack Wilshere – the Arsenal attacking midfielder has limited experience at the U21 level only having made five appearances. But the on loan Bolton player has impressed Arsene Wenger enough at Arsenal to stick around at least for now. With the different styles he’s been able to learn from – Arsenal’s all out attack and Bolton’s long-ball defensive set up, Wilshere has the ability to adapt to different formations and will be one to watch this Premier League season as his potential and skill continue to grow.

As much as the heartbreak and dread hurt England fans during the 2010 World Cup, there is still room for optimism among the England faithful. A small core of current England players are still only in their early to mid twenties. Wayne Rooney, Glen Johnson, Jermaine Defoe, Joe Hart, and others form the nucleus to build a Euro 2012 and World Cup 2014 squad around. Lets hope the players make good on their promise and Mr. Capello soon gives them the shot they deserve.

Fresh from giving England fans palpitations after Fridays semi-final win against host nation Sweden, England’s young lions have a chance to win some silverware for the junior lions for the first time since 1993. England Under 18′s triumphed that year, riding a week long wave of growing optimism and support to beat Turkey 1-0 in front of 25,000 fans in Nottingham.  Tonight’s Under-21 final pits England against its greatest rivals of the modern era, Germany, in a repeat of the final Group A game.

England of course, will be missing three players. Joe Hart has failed in an appeal to get his second booking recinded after shadow boxing one of the Swedish players in the penalty shoot out. Agbonlahor also picked up a second booking and Campbell was sent off in extra time after receiving two bookings. Normally, that would be a big blow for any side, but with Theo Walcott desperate to finally get his tournament going, and a straight choice between Scott Loach or the very highly rated Joe Lewis, Pearce has the talent to fill the gaps.

It also seems to put a bit of a mockery on the claims that English youth football is suffering due to the influx of foriegn players. Pearce has led this side to the semi finals of the last two tournaments, with players such as Mark Noble, Gabriel Agbonlahor, James Milner and Theo Walcott at his disposal. These are not just players desperately thrown in to fill gaps, these are quality players, with plenty of Premiership experience between them.

Can they win tonight? Of course they can, the reserve team drew with the German side a week ago, so they will have not given anything away to their opponents. I’ve also seen that the Germans have changed their kit to red tonight to give them a psychological advantage which oddly means they’ve completely forgotten about Englands 5-1 destruction of Germany in Munich in September 2001. That night, the Senior side tried the same trick to stop England wearing red, but ultimately it blew up in their faces.

Of course the crucial thing here is not to put too much pressure on the side and the players if they can win tonight. England Under 21′s had a golden period in the early 1980′s, winning the competition twice in a row, 1982 and 1984. Those players perhaps didn’t move onwards as much apart from Trevor Steven and Mark Hateley perhaps but Howard Gayle, Paul Walsh and Mel Sterland never really made the step up.

There’s no doubt that the England Under 21′s side have shown that their are some positives for the future of English football, despite the doomongers and pessimists that worry constantly about the lack of English players at the Big 4. Of course we’d like to see more English talent given a chance, but Manchester United have always championed English talent, Liverpool have 2 or 3 outstanding prospects coming through also.

Pearce will be looking to bring the trophy home tonight from Malmo and improve his fast rising reputation in the England set up. His passion and pride for his country can never be questioned and before the team leave the dressing rooms tonight, Pearce will instill them just what winning this tournament will mean for these players.

It was not the start that England’s Under 21 side wanted, but it could have been a whole lot worse after today’s close shave against a Finland side full of surprises. By finding themselves in the toughest of the two groups with Spain and Germany, this was the game that Stuart Pearce would have targeted as a must win match. With a side full of Premiership regulars including Micah Richards, Theo Walcott, Lee Catermole and captained by West Ham’s prodigious midfielder David Noble, this is a squad that great things are expected of.

The Finns certainly made sure that no-one in the camp will forget this clash in a hurry as England were fortunate to escape will 3 points. England looked shocked and reverted to type by simply humping the ball forward and hoping for the best. With Walcott and Agbonlahor in the side, pace is a weapon the Under 21′s can utilise but they’ll need a different perspective to get past the other two sides. It’s so frustrating when you see such talented players revert to type and the dreaded long ball game.

The fact they were playing side that were taller all through the side, especially the impressive striker Sadik, made the long ball a waste of the ball. Sadik was impressive throughout the game and he caused the back four of Cranie, Mancienne, Richards and Gibbs problems all game. The Young Lions had been on the back foot from the kick off and were extremely fortunate to take the lead through Cattermole’s drive but they were caught out when Mancienne was correctly shown a red card for a professional foul after a mix up between the Chelsea prospect and Joe Hart in the England goal.

Former Southampton youngster Tim Sparv made no mistake from the resulting penalty and it looked like the writing was on the wall for Stuart Pearce’s boys but they hung on until half time. Walcott who had another disappointing 45 minutes was replaced by Frazier Campbell and amazingly England took the lead when Micah Richards powered the ball home from a corner. After that, it was a case of desperate defending with Martin Cranie, the Portsmouth prospect, superb after being moved to centre back after the sending off. Finland probably deserved the win, so must be feeling so low after losing this game in Hamlstad.

For a side brimming with so much top level experience it was a strange display. Maybe it was nerves, perhaps they were over confident but England were lacking any real drive and quality in possession. Noble tried his best in midfield, but once they went a man down it was all hands to the pump. Cranie though can be delighted with his performance as he seemed to be everywhere in defence, breaking up moves, throwing himself at the ball and tackling back consistently well.

Pearce was candid and honest after the game, saying that it was nowhere near good enough but he’ll be happy to escape with the three points. Yet he must be frustrated with some of the players who started the game whose reputations certainly preceded them to Sweden for this tournament. He’ll certainly need to get the players going for Thursday’s clash against the favourites Spain, a repeat performance could see England humbled in Gothenburg