Sheffield United ace Sydie Peck claims latest England U21s cap in six-goal thriller
Sheffield United ace Sydie Peck secured another cap for England’s Under-21s on Friday night.
Sheffield United midfielder Sydie Peck helped England Under-21s move one step closer to qualifying for next summer’s European Championship with a pulsating 4-2 win over Kazakhstan at Molineux on Friday night.
After Slovakia were beaten 2-0 at home by the Republic of Ireland, Lee Carsley’s side took advantage of the opportunity to open up a six-point lead at the top of Group D with just two games remaining, meaning they are now within touching distance of securing qualification for next summer’s tournament and getting the chance to defend their crown.
The Three Lions youngsters got the job done against Kazakhstan thanks to an own goal from Ali Turganov and strikes from Josh Acheampong, Max Alleyne and former United youngster Will Lankshear, who stepped off the bench to make his U21s debut just over 20 minutes before scoring England’s fourth and final goal of the game.
Peck was introduced alongside Lankshear with 69 minutes on the clock, replacing Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Archie Gray, while Lankshear replaced Southampton loanee Divin Mubama.
With the scores level at 2-2 at the half-time break, England restored their lead with 60 minutes on the clock when Burnley loanee Max Alleyne drilled home a first-time effort from inside the penalty area, meaning the Three Lions led 3-2 at the time of Peck’s introduction.
Slotting into midfield alongside Borussia Dortmund ace Jobe Bellingham, who created two of England’s four goals, Peck had 36 touches of the ball, completed 97 per cent of his attempted passes and won four of his ten duels.
Following his cameo against Kazakhstan, Peck has featured in all eight of England’s European Championship qualifiers so far, meaning he will be keen to maintain that record when Carsley’s troops face Slovakia at Stoke City’s bet365 Stadium next Friday evening in their penultimate qualifier. England could seal qualification for next summer’s tournament in Albania and Serbia after that game.
The Three Lions youngsters, who have won the last two European Championship titles at U21s level, will bring their qualification campaign to an end with a clash against Ireland in Cork on Tuesday, October 6.