England U21 1-2 Germany U21: Lee Carsley's holders face daunting Spain clash after underwhelming group defeat

England Under-21s will continue the defence of their European Championships title in the knockout rounds despite a 2-1 defeat to Germany Under-21s in their final Group B encounter.

Starting the night three points clear of Slovenia in second place, and with the Czech Republic already eliminated, Lee Carsley's men were safe in the knowledge that a draw would see them through.

However, the Three Lions' quest for that precious point - or three to overtake their foes and qualify in first - started appallingly, as it took just three minutes for the group leaders to surge into the lead.

A tremendous switch from left-back Lukas Ullrich found Eintracht Frankfurt winger Ansgar Knauff, whose first touch was sublime and his volley into the far corner even better.

The 23-year-old then turned provider for Nelson Weiper to double the Germans' advantage with 33 minutes gone, as Knauff's floated cross into the mixer landed on the head of the Mainz 05 attacker, who positioned himself in between both centre-backs and guided a deft header into the bottom corner.

Carsley bit the bullet at half time, making no fewer than three changes as England underwent an attacking reshuffle, one that did not initially pay dividends despite all of their huffing and puffing.

England's pressure finally told in minute 76, as Ipswich Town's Omari Hutchinson produced a piece of exquisite skill to beat his man and get to the byline, before pulling back for Alex Scott to tap home.

Germany offered next to nothing on the attacking front in the second half, but it mattered little as they held out for the win that gave them the Group B gold medal, while Slovenia's 2-0 loss to the Czechs saw England through.

England safely through, but more questions than answers for Carsley

After failing to cut the attacking mustard in their goalless draw with Slovenia, England produced another largely insipid attacking display that hardly inspires optimism for a daunting knockout path.

Carsley persisted with Marseille's Jonathan Rowe up top again, but while the 22-year-old battled hard, he managed just one strike off target all evening.

Rowe was one of three players Carsley hauled off at the break as the manager searched for a dash of offensive ingenuity, instead fielding a more recognisable focal point in the shape of Jay Stansfield.

However, with 66% of the ball and 18 shots on their tally, England could not pick the lock until a moment of individual brilliance from Hutchinson, who had his pick of six players to square the ball back to in the box.

Overloading the area in such fashion will no doubt leave England vulnerable to counter-attacks from quarter-final opponents Spain and potential semi-final opponents Portugal or the Netherlands, though, and Carsley's men have done little to enhance their title-defending credentials in the past week or so.

Written by
Ben Knapton