England ease past Israel to reach first Euro U21 final since 2009

Updated: Oct 12, 2023, 05:40 am

Morgan Gibbs-White put England on the path to victory and a place in the final of the European U21 Championship.
Morgan Gibbs-White put England on the path to victory and a place in the final of the European U21 Championship.
Alex Caparros - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images

England will meet Spain in the final of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship after beating Israel 3-0 in Wednesday's first semifinal at Georgia's Batumi Arena.

Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White gave England the lead three minutes before half-time with a fine header after a left-wing cross from Cole Palmer.

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Manchester City starlet Palmer then gave England some breathing room in the 63rd minute with a close-range finish that was allowed to stand following a long review from the Video Assistant Referee after initially being ruled out for offside.

Substitute Cameron Archer put the result beyond doubt in the 90th minute with a rising shot from from the centre of the penalty box.

Israel, who had beaten tournament co-hosts Georgia on penalties in the quarterfinals, had never previously made it beyond the group stage at the prestigious U21 competition.

But their dream run came to an end at the hands of Lee Carsley's dominant England side, who have yet to concede a goal in the competition and will now compete in the final for the first time since 2009.

Seeking to become European champions at U21 level for the third time and first since back-to-back triumphs in 1982 and 1984, England will have to get past a Spain side that thrashed Ukraine 5-1 in Wednesday's second semifinal in Bucharest.

Spain, winners of three Euro U21 titles in the last six editions of the tournament, have scored 13 goals in five games en route to Saturday's final in Batumi, Georgia.