Meet the England Under 21s going for glory in Slovakia

Lee Carsley’s England Under 21 side will continue their quest to win back-to-back European Championships on Wednesday when they take on the Netherlands in the semi-finals of the tournament.

The Young Lions’ path to the final four has not been easy after they scraped through the group stage having picked up just four points in three games. 

But they showed no signs of any inferiority complex on Saturday when they put in a stunning performance to beat Spain 3-1, the team they defeated in the final two years ago.

Carsley’s side now face the Netherlands, who themselves beat Portugal 1-0 in the quarter-finals, in Bratislava.

But what do we know about the 23-man England squad who are trying to make history?

Mail Sport has taken a look below… 

Goalkeepers 

James Beadle

England’s No 1 and a player that has previously had a taste of training with the senior team.

Beadle, who is heading on loan to Birmingham City next season, is mature beyond his years and what is most striking to FA staff is his level of accountability if he makes mistakes. A perfectionist that is eager to get to the very top.

Teddy Sharman-Lowe

Chelsea youngster Sharman-Lowe, who will play in League One on loan at Bolton Wanderers next season, is a great character to have around camp.

Described as intelligent and eloquent, the 22-year-old’s role, along with Tommy Simkin, can go under the radar when they don’t kick a ball at the tournament.

Tommy Simkin

Third-choice goalkeeper Simkin comes from a rich footballing family with his uncle Darren and cousin Lily both having played for Wolves.

He likes to think of himself as a bit of a comedian in this group and away from squad meetings he can be found on a nearby Padel court.

Defenders 

Charlie Cresswell

The vocal leader of this England team and an old-fashioned centre half in more ways than one, Cresswell is a dream for a coach like Carsley.

His dad Richard used to play for Leeds and Cresswell Jnr is now thriving out in France playing for FC Toulouse. He plays guitar in his free time and is a big country music fan, although he leaves cooking to his girlfriend, who lives with him in the south of France.

CJ Egan-Riley

One of only two outfield players not to get a single minute of action this summer, Egan-Riley – who won promotion to the Premier League with Burnley before agreeing a move to Marseille – has been a model pro.

Always seen joking around with Tino Livramento in training, the last open session dominated by whether banana is a good choice for breakfast!

Ronnie Edwards

The Southampton centre back is the joker of the pack and has brought the energy despite joining CJ Egan-Riley in not kicking a ball so far.

Love Island fan Edwards grew up solely playing as a central midfielder before he was moved to centre back at Peterborough United and the rest is history.

Tino Livramento

The Newcastle United full-back, who has played on the left and the right for England this tournament, is perhaps the frontrunner from this group to make Thomas Tuchel’s 2026 World Cup squad.

He has spent his downtime in Slovakia whizzing around Bratislava on the city lime bikes.

Brooke Norton-Cuffy

A product of Arsenal’s academy, right back Norton-Cuffy is thriving in Serie A playing for Genoa having previously had loan spells in the EFL at Lincoln City, Rotherham United, Coventry City and Millwall.

The England youngster takes Italian lessons two to three times a week and runs his own TikTok account.

Jarell Quansah

The Bayer Leverkusen-bound defender is a quiet character that has been joined at the hip with Harvey Elliott and Tyler Morton all through this trip to Slovakia.

The ball-playing centre back, who has been at Liverpool since the age of five, was selected by Thomas Tuchel in his first senior England squad but he has yet to appear for the Three Lions.

Midfielders 

Elliot Anderson

Anderson joined Newcastle United as an eight-year-old and eventually broke through at St James’ Park under Eddie Howe.

Now at Nottingham Forest, the central midfielder, who is playing deeper than ever before as a No 6 for England’s Under-21’s, is morphing into the exact type of player England’s seniors are missing.

Played for Scotland through younger age groups but is now fully committed to England.

Archie Gray

Part of one of the great footballing families, Gray broke into the Leeds first team squad at 15 and has since gone on to become a Europa League winner at Tottenham Hotspur.

A midfielder who has played a lot in defence for club and country due to his versatility, Gray is very intelligent.

He is avid chess player who likes to get the board out with Cresswell, who he played with at Leeds. His favourite meal is red pesto gnocchi.

Hayden Hackney

A quiet and unassuming midfielder, Hayden Hackney appears quite happy to go with the flow out here in Carsley’s squad.

Hackney previously got two caps for Scotland Under-21s, who he qualifies for through his mum Christine, before switching allegiance to England in 2023.

Jack Hinshelwood

One of the most versatile players at Carsley’s disposal, he’s played at left back and right back despite being most comfortable as a midfielder at Brighton.

Comes from rich footballing stock and turning out for the Seagulls meant he was the fourth member of his family to play in the top flight after great-grandfather Wally (Chelsea and Fulham), grandfather Paul (Crystal Palace) and great-uncle Martin (Crystal Palace).

James McAtee

The captain of this new-look Under-21’s, McAtee chose to prioritise this tournament over going away to the Club World Cup with Manchester City.

He has a really close family unit with brother John also a professional footballer. The Salford-born midfielder is very laid back and a leader by example, rather than ranter and raver, on and off the pitch.

Tyler Morton

The Liverpool youngster has proven to be a standards driver in training after a difficult season with so few minutes for the Premier League champions.

A lot of his family have come over to Slovakia to support and he even indulged with a bit of dancing in the street with them one night on an off day in Bratislava’s Old Town.

Alex Scott

A versatile midfielder from Guernsey, Scott has come a long way since being released by Southampton at the age of 12.

Scott has excelled as a box-to-box player out here and got himself a goal during the group stages.

His step-sister is Man United Women’s defender Maya Le Tissier and Scott has always been very interested in the community of YouTube creators, particularly The Sidemen.

Forwards 

Omari Hutchinson

Ipswich Town’s Omari Hutchinson is as resilient as they come having twice been released by Chelsea and eventually let go by Arsenal as a youngster.

He exploded on social media very young and had around 70,000 followers at the age of 12. One of Hutchinson’s biggest passions these days is his fashion.

Samuel Iling-Junior

London-born Iling-Junior spent nine years in Chelsea’s academy before landing a big move to Juventus in 2020.

The wide player, who is now on the books at Aston Villa, speaks fluent Italian and is described by figures around the England camp as a real family man.

Harvey Elliott

Along with Cresswell, Elliott is the only survivor from the victorious England Under-21’s side that won the Euros two years ago in Georgia.

Elliott is an important figure in this group as he forms part of the leadership group around McAtee.

He is a big basketball fan and has no doubt been keeping a close eye on the televised three-versus-three tournament that is taking place outside the team hotel here in Bratislava.

Ethan Nwaneri

This is Ethan Nwaneri’s first tournament with England’s Under-21’s and comes off the back of a breakthrough season in Arsenal’s first team where he has shone in the Premier League and Champions League.

Nwaneri wrote himself into English football’s record books when he became the youngest player in Premier League history to debut, appearing for Arsenal at the age of 15 years and 181 days back in 2022.

Closest friends in this squad with Omari Hutchinson.

Jonathan Rowe

Rowe spent a decade at Norwich before leaving for Marseille last summer and it has been a whirlwind over in France.

The England attacker, who could see the Wembley Stadium arch from his back garden as a kid, has a French tutor and is as fiercely determined now as he was when he was younger when his biggest challenge was battling against Osgood-Schlatter disease, a common knee problem in adolescents.

Jay Stansfield

A quiet and unassuming guy, the £15million Birmingham City striker has been likened to a ‘pitbull’ by team-mates out here due to his ferocity pressing down opponents.

He made his Premier League debut with Fulham before dropping down to League One, where he won the title this season with Birmingham.

Tom Fellows

Initially travelled as a training player, Fellows was upgraded to Carsley’s full squad after Jobe Bellingham withdrew to go to the Club World Cup.

The West Brom wide player has been on the books of the Baggies since his Under-10’s days and is being tipped to land a plum Premier League move this summer with Everton among the clubs interested.