Carsley reflects on rewarding Republic of Ireland victory

England men’s under-21s head coach Lee Carsley was in good spirits as his team made it four wins from four games in their 2027 U21 EURO Qualification programme.

A goal apiece from Divin Mubama and Tyrique George earned the Young Lions the points in the Second City, building on wins over Moldova and Andorra last month.

And the England boss was quick to express his pride in the team’s battling performance.

“The conditions were very difficult for the players,” said Carsley. “We spoke a lot before the game, and after, about the mentality, but I thought they stood up to the challenge.

“They have to do that if they want to make it into the senior team, get on and have careers in the game, but I thought that they were outstanding tonight.”

Carsley also commented on the players’ development and personal accolades which have come in recent weeks.

“We spoke in our welcome meeting that there have been a lot of firsts this month; first Champions League appearance, Premier League goal, so it’s brilliant to see,” he added.

“It’s moments like these when you realise how young they are and developing these new experiences while under the spotlight.

“They all develop in their own time, but Tyrique is in a good position at the moment, and hopefully he can continue that.

“I spoke to him about his versatility before the game, and something I knocked into the players was to make themselves selectable, and if you have more options you can play, even better.”

Lewis Hall, who was handed a senior cap by Carsley, received praise for his performance as the Young Lions romped to within a point of top placed Slovakia with a game in hand.

“The players can still develop their attributes,” explained Carsley. “I think one you don’t see in Lewis is his mentality; he’s very professional, wants to win and compete – you can’t coach that.

“His biggest thing now is to stay fit and keep building, but he’s in a good place.”