England national under-21 football team
 |
|
| Nickname(s) | The Young Lions |
|---|---|
| Association | The Football Association |
| Head coach | Aidy Boothroyd |
| Most caps | James Milner (46) |
| Top scorer |
Alan Shearer & Francis Jeffers (13) |
| First international | |
 England U-21 0–0 Wales U-21  (Molineux, Wolverhampton; 15 December 1976) |
|
| Biggest win | |
England U-21 9–0 San Marino U-21  (New Meadow, Shrewsbury; 19 November 2013) |
|
| Biggest defeat | |
 Romania U-21 4–0 England U-21 (Ploieşti, Romania; 14 October 1980) & England U-21 0–4 Spain U-21  (St Andrews, Birmingham; 27 February 2001) &  Germany U-21 4–0 England U-21 (Malmö New Stadium, Malmö; 29 June 2009) |
|
| UEFA U-21 Championship | |
| Appearances | 13 (first in 1978) |
| Best result | Winners: (2) 1982, 1984 |
England's national Under-21 football team, also known as England Under-21s or England U21(s), is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team.
This team is for English players aged under 21 at the start of the calendar year in which a two-year European Under-21 Football Championship campaign begins, so some players can remain with the squad until the age of 23. As long as they are eligible, players can play for England at any level, making it possible to play for the U21s, senior side, and again for the U21s, as Jack Butland, Harry Kane, Calum Chambers and John Stones have done recently. It is also possible to play for one country at youth level and another at senior level (providing the player is eligible).
The U-21 team came into existence, following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions, in 1976. A goalless draw in a friendly against Wales at Wolves' Molineux Stadium was England U21s' first result.
England U21s do not have a permanent home. They play in stadia dotted all around England, in an attempt to encourage younger fans in all areas of the country to get behind England. Because of the lower demand compared to the senior national team, smaller grounds can be used. The record attendance for an England U21 match was set on 24 March 2007, when England U21 played Italy U21 in front of a crowd of just under 60,000 at the brand new Wembley Stadium, also a world record attendance for a U21 game. The match was one of the required two "ramp up" events the stadium hosted in order to gain its safety certificate in time for its full-capacity opening for the 2007 FA Cup Final in May.
The original and most successful coach is Dave Sexton, who led the U21s from 1977 to 1990. In this period he combined his duties with managing the top-flight clubs Manchester United (1977–1981) and Coventry City (1981–1983). After Coventry he took a position within the FA as their first Technical Director, at Lilleshall. He handed over U21 responsibilities to England manager Graham Taylor's assistant Lawrie McMenemy for three years before resuming control from 1994 to 1996.
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