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England and Spain’s Under-21s clash descended into chaos on Saturday night as their stars sparked a scuffle after Lee Carsley’s men won 3-1.
A large mass of players came together at the end as tempers flared but team-mates and officials worked to keep any handbags to a minimum.
Spain striker Mateo Joseph looked particularly vexed at England star Charlie Cresswell before Jay Stansfield intervened, in footage filmed by Mail Sport’s Nathan Salt.
While it was unclear what caused the brawl, Cresswell had a handball decision against him overturned by VAR a few minutes into the game, a call which had left Spain furious.
James McAtee and Harvey Elliott bagged inside the first 15 minutes to put England on course for victory.
But Spain were handed a lifeline from the penalty spot when Jarell Quansah brought down Alberto Moleiro late in the first half – a chance Javi Guerra lapped up.
However, Elliot Anderson converted a late penalty late penalty to wrap up the win and seal a last-four showdown with the Netherlands as England seek to retain their title.
England captain McAtee was buzzing after the final whistle, telling Channel 4: ‘We’re over the moon. The focus is all on the semi-final now.
‘We got through but we knew it wasn’t good enough and that we needed to step it up. Over the moon for the win.
‘People say it’s all about the stats now so I’m just happy I can add goals. I came to play and help the lads as much as possible.’
Carsley told the channel: ‘We talked about getting a fast start. But we conceded a penalty very early that was overturned by the VAR. We showed a lot of character. We were so good in the first half. The longer we could stay in the game, the more fluent we could get.
‘We talk about attacking so much that we forget the other side of the game. The two centre-backs, full-backs and the goalkeeper were all so outstanding defending their box today. We defended really well and more than deserved this win.
‘The team responded so well after conceding. The players played with so much confidence. It was really great to watch.’
More to follow.
