Chelsea youngster George fires England U21s to narrow victory | OneFootball

Lee Carsley had cautioned before kick-off that squad changes were inevitable as he remodels a new-look England U21 team, who went on to claim a 1-0 win over Andorra through Tyrique George’s first-half strike.

Only Ethan Nwaneri and Brooke Norton-Cuffy remained from the matchday squad that beat Germany 3-2 to win the U21 Euros this summer, with plenty of new faces as the Young Lions face a period of transition while they work out their best squad for the next tournament in 2027.

In their first game back on English soil since their Euros triumph in Slovakia, Young Lions boss Carsley opted for three changes from the side that won 4-0 in Moldova, with Ashley Phillips replacing Josh Acheampong in defence, while Josh King and Tyrique George were preferred to Tyler Dibling and Divin Mubama.

A neat exchange between Rico Lewis and George, deployed in a central role, released the Chelsea forward into a promising position inside the first five minutes, though the 19-year-old failed to direct his effort on target.

Jamie Gittens, who missed the Young Lions’ Euros campaign due to his Club World Cup commitments, squandered a fine opportunity to open the scoring after skilfully sidestepping an Andorra defender, but fired his shot over the crossbar.

Carsley’s side continued to threaten, with Phillips inches away after the goalkeeper failed to deal with Gittens’ corner, but the defender couldn’t force the ball over the line.

Fulham’s Josh King had the ball in the net just before the half-hour mark, but the flag was raised for offside from Gittens’ pass, denying him of his first goal for the U21s on his first competitive start.

But it was Gittens, five minutes before the interval, once again causing problems for the Andorra defence, weaving past two defenders before teeing up his Chelsea teammate George to fire home emphatically for the opener.

George nearly doubled the Young Lions’ lead after the break, following a defensive scramble from Ethan Nwaneri’s corner that left him with a golden opportunity, but his effort was cleared off the line by Andorra.

Man City’s Lewis, who hailed Carsley’s approach to giving the side greater freedom before the match, found himself drifting into more advanced positions, drawing a fine save from Marc de Castro to prevent England from a second.

Late cameos from Brighton’s Tommy Watson and Sheffield United’s Sydie Peck capped a night of experimentation for England, who will meet again to face the Republic of Ireland in November’s qualifier.