Phil Foden scores solo stunner and France miss two penalties but England eventually fall short in Euro 2019 opener after Aaron Wan-Bissaka's horror own goal
Wednesday 19 June 2019 07:41, UK
France scored twice in the final five minutes to snatch victory as 10-man England's European U21 Championship campaign started with a disheartening defeat in Cesena. Here, we rate the performances of the Young Lions...
Man of the match. Ensured justice prevailed with a solid save from Moussa Dembele's harshly-awarded penalty and produced a fine save to deny the France forward before half time. Commanded his area well while under pressure, particularly at corners, not at fault as England were undone late on.
Had his hands full when dealing with the dangerous Jonathan Bamba and proved up to the task defensively on a number of occasions, until he sliced France's winning goal into his own net with a woeful clearance in the final minute.
Relished the physical battle with Dembele and dealt well with the periods where England were pinned back. Showed great composure on the ball when given time to play out from the back - except for a mis-placed pass in the lead up to Choudhury's red card
Harshly penalised for handball when Jeff Reine-Adelaide's header struck his arm at close range didn't let it affect his game. Marshalled the England rearguard action well until the late collapse.
Given a run for his money by Ikone and Bamba before being caught out of position as the former drilled France's equaliser into the bottom corner late on.
Showed no signs of fatigue from Leicester's rigorous Premier League season with an energetic first-half performance and gave a rare glimpse of his defensive qualities when England were reduced to 10 men.
Gave possession away cheaply throughout and eventually paid the price, flying into a horrific challenge on Bamba which handed France their second half impetus and earned a red card.
On the fringes of England's attacking play in a slightly deeper midfield role but introduced himself in style with a sensational solo effort after leaving no fewer than five French defenders trailing in his wake.
Nearly forced an early own goal when his teasing cross was deflected onto the post before half time and had a second-half effort ruled out for offside.
A nuisance early on as he used his physical stature to bully the French defence but looked rusty as the game wore on and drifted out of the game.
Arguably England's most potent attacking threat inside the opening half-hour but lacked the end product needed to convert his side's dominance when it mattered most.
England face Romania on Friday at 5.30pm in their second Group C clash, and every game during the UEFA European Under-21 Championship will be shown live on Sky Sports.
Sky Sports subscribers will also be able to stream the games via the Sky Sports app or the Sky Go app.
Non-subscribers can watch all the action through NOW TV. A Sky Sports day pass is available for £8.99, a week pass for £14.99 or a month pass for £33.99. NOW TV can be streamed through a computer or apps.
