England Under-20 World Cup champions after beating Venezuela

Updated: May 17, 2023, 05:43 am

Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Freddie Woodman grabbed the headlines in a team of heroes as England won the Under-20 World Cup by beating Venezuela in South Korea.

Paul Simpson's Young Lions were the first England side to reach a world showpiece for over half a century and they followed in the footsteps of Sir Alf Ramsey's team, who lifted the Jules Rimet Trophy in 1966.

Everton's Calvert-Lewin scored the game's only goal after 35 minutes while a second-half penalty save from Newcastle goalkeeper Woodman preserved England's 1-0 lead and ensured they became world champions.

After a slow start the game was lit up by an audacious long-range effort after 16 minutes from Ronaldo Lucena, whose swerving, dipping free kick from all of 40 yards clipped the outside of a post.

Ademola Lookman brought a decent save from Wuilker Farinez before Calvert-Lewin wrote his name into the history books with what proved to be the winning goal.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin celebrates with his England teammates after scoring the winner.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin celebrates with his England teammates after scoring the winner.
KIM DOO-HO/AFP/Getty Images

The Everton forward contested a long, diagonal ball behind the Venezuela defence and saw his initial effort well saved before tapping home the rebound from close range.

Another free kick brought another moment of panic for England just before half-time as Adalberto Penaranda curled an effort narrowly wide.

Tottenham midfielder Josh Onomah saw a 30-yard effort strike the underside of the Venezuela crossbar early in the second half as England pushed for a second goal.

However, the South Americans were becoming increasing more dangerous and were given a golden opportunity to get back into the match when Penaranda went down following a clash of knees with Jake Clarke-Salter.

With 17 minutes to play, the referee pointed to the spot before immediately referring the decision to the video assistant referee. The penalty award stood but Woodman's strong palm kept out Penaranda's spot kick, despite diving the wrong way.

A frantic finale saw England hang on to lift the trophy, surpassing their previous best at the Under-20 World Cup which was a third place finish in 1993.