England U21s vs. USA U23s: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info
England's under-21 men's national team is set to host the United States' U23 squad for a youth international friendly on Thursday at Deepdale in Preston.
For both sides, the match represents a chance to prepare for crucial upcoming games. In October, the U.S. will try to clinch a spot at the 2016 Summer Olympics via the CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Championship.
England, having already missed out on a place in the Olympic football tournament, will begin Euro 2017 qualifying shortly after playing the Americans.
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Here, B/R presents a guide to the match.
Who: England U21 men vs. U.S. U23 men
What: Youth international friendly
Where: Deepdale, Preston, England
When: Thursday, Sept. 3, 7:45 p.m. BST (2:45 p.m. EDT)
TV: BT Sport (UK)
Stream: WatchESPN (US)
England enter Thursday's match hoping to gain experience for an upcoming qualification campaign. The Young Lions failed to reach the semifinals of the 2015 European Under-21 Championship, thus missing out on one of UEFA's four qualification spots for the 2016 Summer Olympics. But Gareth Southgate's players will have a chance to make up for that disappointment quickly.
Just four days after playing an older U.S. team, England will play Norway on Sept. 7 in their first Euro 2017 qualifier. The Young Lions are in UEFA's Group 9, which also includes Kazakhstan, Switzerland and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The winners of each of the nine qualifying groups will qualify automatically for a place in the Euro 2017 finals in Poland. The four best runners-up will enter the playoffs, with two more teams advancing to the final field of 12.
According to Southgate, playing a "high level of opposition" like the U.S. will offer his staff a valuable opportunity to evaluate players.
"The States will be a little bit older than us, as a U23 Olympic team, but that’s a good challenge for the players in their first match and is a chance to establish our way of playing before we go to Norway for an important qualifier the following week," Southgate told TheFA.com.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and coach Andi Herzog are preparing for their chance to qualify for the 2016 Summer Olympics. The Americans missed the 2012 tournament and thus will be hoping to make amends with a strong qualification campaign this time.
CONCACAF will send at least two representatives to Rio de Janeiro next summer, with both coming from its qualification tournament, which is scheduled for Oct. 1-13. The U.S. will face Panama, Cuba and Canada in the group stage, with the top two teams advancing to the semifinals.
The two finalists will qualify automatically for the Olympics, with the third-place team heading to a playoff against a South American team.
Team News
Southampton playmaker James Ward-Prowse has been named England captain ahead of the match. Ward-Prowse, 20, previously captained the Lions at the U19 and U20 levels.
"Being a captain is something that has always been a big driving force of mine and something I’ve always wanted to do," Ward-Prowse told TheFA.com. "So I’m lucky that I’ve been given the privilege of doing it, and I can’t wait to take the armband."
Ward-Prowse has been a regular in Southgate's side, helping England qualify for Euro 2015 and making one appearance in the group stage in the Czech Republic. The captain is not the only member of the squad with experience. According to Nicholas Veevers at TheFA.com, nine players have previous experience with the team under Southgate.
Three players have withdrawn with injuries, however. Everton defender Brendan Galloway, Bury (on loan from Brighton) goalkeeper Christian Walton and Hull (on loan from Arsenal) midfielder Chuba Akpom will miss the match, as noted by the FA.
The U.S. has been training in Manchester since Aug. 30 with a 24-man squad. Fans of the Premier League will recognize midfielder Gedion Zelalem, an Arsenal player who is currently on loan with Scottish side Rangers. As a whole, the squad represents a diverse mix of players based in the U.S. and abroad.
According to USSoccer.com, Herzog's squad includes seven players from the Americans' 2015 U20 World Cup team, which advanced to the quarterfinals in New Zealand: Cameron Carter-Vickers, Emerson Hyndman, Matt Miazga, Rubio Rubin, Zack Steffen, Maki Tall and Zelalem.
After facing England on Thursday, the U.S. will travel to Bury to play Qatar at Gigg Lane.
"These are two important games here because they are our last before the Olympic Qualifying tournament,” Herzog told USSoccer.com. “We have a strong group of players that we believe in, and now we are able to look at some of the guys who did very well with our U-20 team.
Herzog added: "This is really the last chance for all of the players to make an impression before we select the final roster for qualifying.”
As of this writing, the U.S. Federation has not announced any injuries from the squad.
Full squads
England
Goalkeepers: Angus Gunn (Manchester City), Jordan Pickford (Preston North End, on loan from Sunderland), Christian Walton (Bury, on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion)
Defenders: Calum Chambers (Arsenal), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Brendan Galloway (Everton), Joe Gomez (Liverpool), Kortney Hause (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Dominic Iorfa (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Jack Stephens (Middlesbrough, on loan from Southampton), Matt Targett (Southampton)
Midfielders: Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur), Nathaniel Chalobah (Chelsea), Jake Forster-Caskey (Brighton & Hove Albion), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Chelsea), James Ward-Prowse (Southampton)
Forwards: Chuba Akpom (Hull City, on loan from Arsenal), Jordon Ibe (Liverpool), Solly March (Brighton & Hove Albion), Nathan Redmond (Norwich City), Duncan Watmore (Sunderland), James Wilson (Manchester United), Cauley Woodrow (Fulham)
United States
Goalkeepers: Cody Cropper (MK Dons), Ethan Horvath (Molde), Zack Steffen (Freiburg)
Defenders: Cameron Carter-Vickers (Tottenham Hotspur), Matt Miazga (New York Red Bulls), Eric Miller (Montreal Impact), Boyd Okwuonu (Real Salt Lake), Shane O’Neill (Royal Mouscron-Péruwelz), William Packwood (Unattached), Dillon Serna (Colorado Rapids), Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy)
Midfielders: Gboly Ariyibi (Chesterfield), Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake), Emerson Hyndman (Fulham), Benji Joya (Club Necaxa), Marc Pelosi (San Jose Earthquakes), Matt Polster (Chicago Fire), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew), Gedion Zelalem (Rangers)
Forwards: Alonso Hernandez (C.D. Juarez), Jerome Kiesewetter (VfB Stuttgart), Mario Rodriguez (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Rubio Rubin (Utrecht), Maki Tall (Scion)
