Gareth Southgate jets back out to Georgia to witness England’s Euro Under 21 final

Gareth Southgate is jetting back out to Georgia as England Under 21s attempt to create history at the European Championship.

The senior manager spent the best part of a week among Lee Carsley’s squad during the group stage, taking in victories over Israel and Germany, before flying home.

England progressed beyond Portugal and then beat Israel again in Wednesday’s semi-final to set up a tantalising meeting with Spain on Saturday.

It marks a first appearance at a final since 2009 and England have not won the competition for 39 years, when a Mark Hateley-inspired side thumped Spain 3-0 in the 1984 final.

Southgate – who will be flanked by assistant Steve Holland – is keen to see the Young Lions again, with plenty staking a claim for senior recognition in the future. Technical director John McDermott has been with the team throughout.

England will play in the final of the Under 21 European Championships against Spain

Gareth Southgate was out in Georgia with Steve Holland to watch the Under 21s side during the group stage, and will now fly back out to witness Saturday’s final

Saturday’s match with Spain marks a first final appearance in the tournament since 2009

Jacob Ramsey was a standout performer before leaving the camp injured, while Levi Colwill has impressed at centre half. 

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The chemistry of Curtis Jones and Angel Gomes in midfield has provided England with a platform to dominate games and Anthony Gordon is excelling as a centre forward.

Manchester City winger Cole Palmer has had to wait for his chance but scored and assisted twice in sweeping Israel aside 3-0, revealing he took inspiration from a club team-mate.

‘I watched Riyad’s [Mahrez] goals and assists before I left the hotel,’ Palmer said. 

‘Because I knew I was playing right-wing, I thought I’d watch them again. I’ve watched them before, but I hadn’t done it for a while. I spoke to him after the game and he said “well done” and stuff like that.’

Palmer added: ‘I think you can see the quality in the squad and when it clicks like it has we’ve been very good.

‘A lot of it is down to the coaching staff. Before the camp we worked on little things that we need to improve on and you can see it is paying off. If you see previous times, we have sometimes struggled with the build-up, but in this tournament we have been excellent.’

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