Harvey Elliott double sinks Netherlands as England Under-21s reach Euros final
There is something about Lee Carsley and this competition. Just when it looked like England were heading for a nervy period of extra-time in their semi-final against the Netherlands after Brighton's James Beadle had been embarrassed by Noah Ohio's brilliant equaliser, a stunning winner five minutes from full-time by Harvey Elliott – his second goal of the evening and fourth in total in Slovakia – means the dream of winning successive European Under-21 tournaments is alive and well.
It is a reflection of what a cool customer Carsley is these days that while other members of the England bench looked shellshocked after Ohio had come off the bench to cancel out Elliott's opener, he refused to panic. But while the Liverpool forward was the toast of Bratislava as England's place in the final against either Germany or France was confirmed, his manager greeted the full-time whistle by gently embracing his assistant, Ashley Cole. The job is clearly not done yet as Carsley attempts to emulate the feat of Dave Sexton's sides in 1982 and 1984.
There had been a renewed sense of confidence among Carsley's players since booking their place in the last four for an 11th time at this level to draw level with Spain and Italy. With Michael Reiziger's Dutch side missing three of their best players through suspension, it was England who took the initiative at the start. Omari Hutchinson left his marker for dead inside the opening three minutes and picked out Elliott at the back post but somehow Robin Roefs stretched out his left leg just in time to divert his shot around the post.
The NEC Nijmegen goalkeeper had to be alert again to beat away Elliott's powerful shot after good work from Jay Stansfield as England continued to dominate, with Hutchinson looking dangerous whenever he had the ball. Carsley looked satisfied as he adopted his favoured position on his haunches. He had been confident that England's 'hydration strategies' would help them cope with temperatures exceeding 33C for the 6pm kick-off local time, although Elliott admitted the conditions for their quarter-final win over Spain that began three hours later had been the toughest he had ever encountered. Carsley's instructions to his players during the cooling break featuring iced towels was simple: 'For 25 minutes they haven't had a kick,' said the England manager. 'Keep it up.'
But it needed Tino Livramento, showing admirable energy to get back in position after another lung-bursting run forward, to stop a promising Netherlands attack when the lively Ernest Poku had brilliantly controlled a crossfield pass. With the Dutch defence marshalled by the impressive teenager Jorrel Hato – who became Ajax's youngest-ever captain at the age of just 17 and already has six caps for the senior side – England were finding it hard to create another goalscoring opportunity.
Their frustration was compounded when Anderson was harshly booked for catching Antoni Milambo in the face, although it almost ended up with an England goal as the Netherlands wasted the free kick and Alex Scott's effort was deflected wide by Milambo after a lightning break downfield featuring a glorious dummy from Elliott.
Reiziger took pity on Neraysho Kasanwirjo, who spent last season on loan at Rangers, after his roasting from Hutchinson in the first half and replaced him at the break. It appeared to have the desired effect as the Netherlands looked far more balanced. Jack Hinshelwood did well to intercept the ball after Hutchinson lost possession before Beadle was forced to turn Luciano Valente's cross behind for a corner. The Brighton goalkeeper had to be at full stretch to deny Ian Maatsen's powerful drive from outside the area as the Dutch grew in confidence.
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But they suddenly found themselves behind when Anderson beat Hato to the ball in midfield and was unceremoniously brought down, although not before he had found Elliott as he hit the turf. This time, Roefs had no chance as he drilled his shot into the net to spark celebrations on the England bench that were led by former England left-back Cole. Elliot was still feeling the exertions during the second-half cooling break as another member of England's coaching staff sprayed his face and the back off his neck with water.
But their joy was short-lived when Charlie Cresswell miscontrolled an innocuous long ball forward from Aston Villa's Maatsen and Ohio embarrassed Beadle by finding the net from a tight angle from more than 40 yards out after he had strayed too far out of his goal. Elliott had spurned a golden chance to restore England's lead just before he eventually did, picking up the ball just outside the area and finishing off a mazy run with another pile-driver. In this form, he and Carsley will take some stopping.
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