Czech Republic U-21s vs England U-21s predictions: Young Lions cannot afford another slow start
- England beat Czech Republic twice in qualifying
- Czech Republic are winless in five games
- Recommended bet: England & under 3.5 goals
England have experienced nothing but pain in recent European Under-21 Championship campaigns but head coach Lee Carsley has assembled an exciting squad, one that's good enough to avoid making the same mistakes as previous Young Lions teams.
It has been 37 years since England won their second and most recent Euros crown, with five of their last six attempts to pick up a third U-21 title ending in the group stage.
This time around, they rank among the favourites to take home the top prize, with Carsley having selected a squad packed full of Premier League regulars, including Morgan Gibbs-White, Levi Colwill, Curtis Jones, Anthony Gordon and Jacob Ramsey.
But they have been placed in a tough group alongside Germany, Israel and Czech Republic, making a winning start against the latter on Thursday in Batumi a must.
Team news
Manchester City midfielder James McAtee and Tottenham right-back Djed Spence missed out on the squad through injury. But since naming his party, Carsley has had no fresh injury worries.
He faces a tough decision on who to start up front without a recognised No9 in the squad and may go with a forward line of Smith-Rowe, Gibbs-White and Noni Madueke.
All but two of the Czech players ply their trade in their domestic league but goalkeeper Vitezslav Jaros is on the books of Liverpool and played on loan at Stockport last season.
The stats
England won both games against Czech Republic in qualifying as they finished top of Group G with a record of eight wins, one draw and one defeat from their 10 games.
The Young Lions lost their last game before the Euros but had won eight of their previous nine, beating the likes of France and reigning champions Germany.
England are bidding to win their opening game at the tournament for the first time since 2009. Two years before that, England had opened their campaign with a goalless draw against the Czech Republic.
The Czechs enter the tournament on a poor run, failing to win any of their last five games and scoring just twice in that time.
Lvicata have seen one or both sides fail to score in nine of their last 15 games, although both teams to score did land in two of their three matches at the 2021 Euros.
Prediction
Much like England, Czech Republic's success in the European Under-21 Championship came some time ago, with their sole title won in 2002, and it has been lean pickings since then.
They have failed to qualify for half of the Euros since winning the title and only made it out of the group stage once when they have participated.
Factor in recent performances, which include heavy defeats to Portugal and Norway, and the majority of the team playing at a lower level than England and this shapes up as a very winnable game for the Young Lions.
With clashes against Germany and a tricky Israel side to come, the pressure is on Carsley's team.
But they exerted their dominance in this fixture during qualifying and their extra quality in midfield should make all the difference again.
Given the Czechs have been struggling for goals of late and England lack a more traditional striker, goals may be in short supply, but those that do arrive should come from the Young Lions.
