England secure hard-fought draw in U19 Euro opener

England fought hard to secure a 2-2 draw in their European U19 Championship opener with Norway at the Stadionul Ilie Oana on Saturday.

Head coach Will Antwi’s starting line-up included Chelsea forward Shim Mheuka and Tottenham Hotspur’s Mikey Moore.

Norway were unbeaten throughout their qualifying campaign and made England work hard to secure a point in the fixture.

England scored the game’s first goal in the 11th minute when forward Kadan Young gave a precise pass to Tom Watson, whose deflected shot left Norway goalkeeper Daniel Saetren stranded.

They came close to extending their lead shortly after, with the bar denying Mheuka’s header from going in.

Norway restored parity through the brilliance of Alexander Rossing-Lelesiit, who skipped past his markers before firing a shot past goalkeeper Tom Setford.

Young was then denied by the woodwork from restoring England’s lead after combining with Moore.

Norway took the lead before halftime when Rossing-Lelesiit’s pass found Sondre Granaas in the penalty area before the Molde midfielder put the ball in the net.

Both teams struggled to create chances early on in the second half, although Mheuka and Tom Watson could have scored for England.

Moore levelled the scoreline for the 2022 champions with ten minutes remaining, striking the ball past Saetren from the penalty spot.

Manchester United starlet Ethan Wheatley came on for Fulham’s Joshua King in the 82nd minute and looked dangerous, but could not bag the winner.

Rosenborg’s young star Jesper Reitan-Sunde came close to scoring the winning goal for Norway.

After the opening round of matches in Group B, the Netherlands are top after beating Germany 3-0, while England and Norway are joint second.

England will face Germany on Tuesday evening at the Arcul de Triumf Stadium in their second group fixture.