England Under-21s end disappointing Euro tournament with draw against Croatia despite leading three times
ENGLAND Under-21s finished their disappointing Euro 2019 campaign in typical fashion: being punished for their errors.
The Young Lions led three times but were pegged back each time by Croatia in San Marino.
Reiss Nelson earned a penalty and stepped up to slot it home with 11 minutes played but Josip Brekalo outdid Jonjoe Kenny to equalise before the break.
Leicester’s James Maddison pounced on a poor headed clearance to fire Aidy Boothroyd’s side back in front immediately after the break.
But then left-back Lloyd Kelly – who signed for Bournemouth before the tournament started – needlessly gave away possession on the corner of England’s box.
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And just like against France and Romania, the Young Lions were punished as Nikola Vlasic found the corner but was injured in the process.
Right-back Jonjoe Kenny made amends for his earlier troubles by lashing in a brilliant strike from 25 yards to put England in front for the third time – it was his first goal for the U21s and clearly surprised a few of his team-mates.
But with eight minutes to go, Brekalo found space in the area and slotted under Dean Henderson as both teams ended the tournament without a win.