England Under-21 players will soon be in contention for senior side, says Roy Hodgson following 6-0 win over Scotland

The England manager took charge of the age-restricted side

Phil Medlicott
Wednesday 14 August 2013 11:20 BST
Comments
Roy Hodgson talks to the Under 21s
Roy Hodgson talks to the Under 21s

Roy Hodgson has no doubt some of the England Under-21s players on show in last night's 6-0 thrashing of Scotland will soon be in contention to feature for the senior side.

Nathan Redmond, Raheem Sterling, Connor Wickham, Ross Barkley, Jonjo Shelvey and Tom Carroll got the goals in the friendly at Bramall Lane.

And afterwards, England seniors boss Hodgson - in charge of the Young Lions on a one-off basis while the search continues for a permanent successor to Stuart Pearce - made clear his enthusiasm for the display he had just overseen.

Asked if he felt some of those who had played might have a chance of being involved in the next senior friendly after tonight's clash between England and Scotland at Wembley, Hodgson said: "Without a shadow of a doubt.

"They really did take their chances with both hands, and a lot of those players would certainly not be out of place in the senior team."

Sterling and Shelvey have already been handed senior caps in the past by Hodgson.

Last night the pair were part of a Young Lions group that featured several players from both the squad that lost all three of their games at June's European Championship in Israel under Pearce and the England Under-20s party that managed just two points from their three matches at the World Cup in Turkey this summer.

As a consequence of the two disappointing campaigns, there have been plenty of questions asked about the development of young English players of late.

And Hodgson feels the way in which the Under-21s swept to victory yesterday - against a Scotland side who looked capable of putting up little resistance - sent a defiant message to those who have criticised the youth set-up.

"Certainly it has put the statements that English football has no talented players, and that we have nothing coming through, to bed," he said.

"Hopefully a lot of people who have made the bold statements will have seen the performances and they will struggle to tell me that some of those boys out there have got no future, no technique and no ability."

Giving his take on the match, Scotland Under-21s boss Billy Stark said: "It was a chastening experience.

"I have been in football long enough to know that however you approach a game, you can never be absolutely sure. But I never saw that coming."

PA

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in