England coach sends message to Arsenal after ‘incredible’ Ethan Nwaneri display | Football

England Under-21 head coach Lee Carsley insists he will be in regular contact with Arsenal to monitor the development of Ethan Nwaneri.

The teenager, who only turned last week, has enjoyed a stellar breakthrough campaign during which he has already amassed eight goals.

No stage has been too big for a player who became the youngest in Premier League history when he made his debut at 15 back in September 2022 so it was no surprise to see Nwaneri impress on his full debut for Carsley’s side last night.

Nwaneri’s performance against Portugal in a 3-1 win was capped by an outstanding goal which saw him cut in from the right wing and onto his favoured left foot, before delivered a powerful curling shot into the bottom corner, a move that is fast becoming his signature.

‘I think it’s definitely a finish that he’s got,’ said Carsley, reflecting on Nwaneri’s goal after the game.

‘Noni’s [Madueke’s] got the same finish where everyone knows exactly what’s gonna happen, but you just cannot stop it. So you know he’s gonna go, touch, finish and he took his goal so well.

‘But what we have to keep remembering, [is that] he’s 18 [years old], like [it is] unbelievable.

‘So we just have to encourage these guys, it’s important the rest of the team support him as well because I’m not sure it’s always gonna be as progressive as it is.’

If he hasn’t been promoted to the senior squad by the time Tuchel comes to select his players for the World Cup qualifier against Andorra in June, Nwaneri looks certain to figure in this summer’s European Under-21 Championships but Carsley admits he will consult with Arsenal before adding more work to the youngster’s schedule.

‘But God, what an impression he’s made.’ Carsley added. ‘It’s important that we look after him and make sure that, going to the tournament in the summer, is that the right thing.

‘We’ll obviously we’ll work with Arsenal and make sure that we’re on the same page.’

Carsley, meanwhile, thinks fans will be watching’exciting games’ at the Euros this summer following their 4-2 friendly victory at The Hawthorns.

The Young Lions were also involved in another thriller following Friday’s 5-3 defeat to France.

Hayden Hackney and Nwaneri had England two goals to the good before Fabio Silva got Portugal on the scoreboard.

Omari Hutchinson and Jaden Philogene then scored either side of Carlos Borges’ strike as England came away with one victory from the international window.

Carsley will next see his side in action in competitive action this summer and thinks there will be plenty to be excited about.

He said: ‘We won’t play a game before we go out to the tournament so it was important that we tried to get something out of this window.

‘We could have won that game really comfortably, played with a lot more control than we did, but it’s the first time that myself and the staff have worked with the players in a year so excited for the future with them.

‘We are a bit transitional and a bit ‘basketbally’ which won’t work in the summer. Because they’re so attacking and enthusiastic I don’t want to dampen that too much because I don’t think we’ve got enough English players like that.

‘I think you’re going to see some exciting games and hopefully I want them to play with that belief.’

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