Ben Johnson believes Ashley Cole’s influence can be key in England Under-21s’ bid to end their 39-year trophy drought.

The Young Lions host the Czech Republic in their Euro 2023 opener in Georgia on Thursday.

Cole – England’s most capped full-back with 107 appearances – has been part of Lee Carsley’s backroom staff since the boss was appointed in 2021.

He made his Premier League debut for Arsenal in May 2000 – when full-back Johnson was only four months old – and the West Ham youngster knows Cole’s input is crucial.

He said: “Ash is a top guy and a top coach. I think there could be a perception of him being here because of what he’s done for the seniors but his coaching is top drawer.

“He is a real encouragement to the lads. We respect him anyway but we respect even more for what he’s done in his career. So to be coached by him and learning tips off one of the best full-backs ever is such a big plus for me.

“It’s really surreal, just having banter and just speaking to him as if he’s just a normal guy.

“I remember him a lot at Chelsea and that was probably when he was at the peak of the game.

“To have him in this environment, to learn off and to speak so openly to is something that will go a long way and something I’ll take on for the rest of my career.”

The closest England have got to winning the tournament for the first time since 1984 was in 2009 when they lost to Germany in the final.

A semi-final place in 2017 is their most recent brush with glory and since then they have crashed out of the group stages in 2019 and 2021.

They also face reigning champions Germany and Israel next week in Georgia but Johnson believes Carsley’s men can justify any favourites tag.

He said: “I’ve been in a few teams and people have always said we’re favourites. We know how tough it is going to be but just looking around the changing room, seeing how many players we’ve got with Premier League experience and ability is just so encouraging.

“So, for us, it’s about focusing on us within the group. The staff are helping us to get right for one game at a time and we’ll see how far we can go.”

Head coach Brendon McCullum insisted England felt “validated” despite an agonising defeat in the first Ashes Test, and doubled down on the selection gamble of Moeen Ali.

England drove the game forward for the majority of five gripping days at Edgbaston but still find themselves 1-0 down with four to play after Australia’s more conservative approach carried them to a two-wicket victory in the dying moments of the final evening.

It needed a brilliant match-winning intervention of 44 not out from captain Pat Cummins to seal the deal, as England failed to defend a target of 281 thanks to his ninth-wicket stand with tailender Nathan Lyon.

England skipper Ben Stokes refused to entertain regrets after the match, commending his team for setting up a dramatic finish to a game that could have fallen flat due to a slow pitch and rain delays.

McCullum is cut from exactly the same cloth and he saw enough from his side to feel sure that their commitment to risky, aggressive cricket was the right way to go.

“I’m really proud of the boys to be honest. I thought it was a cracking Test match,” he said.

“I’m sure everyone that watched all around the world and everyone who was here at Edgbaston absolutely loved it and that includes us. I had an absolutely amazing time.

“Obviously you’d rather have won the game – that’s just the nature of sport sometimes – but I thought the way that we played validated our style of play.

“We firmly believe, the skipper and I, that this gives us our greatest chance.

“Of everyone that has watched this game over the last five days, I would be very surprised if there were too many people who disagree with how we go about playing, because everyone was left entertained.

“You’re not always going to win and we understand that, but we want to keep getting up and throwing punches as a team.”

McCullum was equally undeterred when it came to questions over Moeen’s painful return to the Test arena.

The 36-year-old was tempted out of red-ball retirement after Jack Leach went down with a stress fracture but, despite producing a couple of superb wicket-taking deliveries, he was reduced to a peripheral role in the critical fourth innings after a blister opened up on his right index finger.

That left England relying heavily on Joe Root’s part-time off-breaks and invited speculation over Moeen’s place in the second Test at Lord’s next Wednesday.

McCullum suggested some thought would be given to possible call-ups – with Surrey’s Will Jacks the most obvious candidate – but was confident that the injury could be resolved in the coming days. If that is the case, he guaranteed Moeen another shot.

“You’ve got to have some ideas and some theories up your sleeve and some options as well, but I’m pretty confident that we can get on top of Mo’s finger,” he said.

“That will give us an opportunity to select him in the next game and if he’s available, he will be selected.

“I thought Mo did a great job – he bowled a couple of absolute ‘jaffas’ in the game and that’s what his role was, to try and make breakthroughs when he had the opportunity.

“He’s got a big smile on his face, he’s loving being back playing Test cricket, which is testament to the game and also Stokesy and all the boys for making the environment one that you want to be a part of.”

Jonny Bairstow was another player who had some words of encouragement from McCullum after a tricky time behind the stumps.

He dropped a couple of catches and missed a stumping in the match, leaving some pining for the absent Ben Foakes and his imperious glovework.

Bairstow’s return from a broken leg and the emergence of Harry Brook at number five means Foakes will continue to be the odd man out and McCullum, a former international wicketkeeper, declared himself content with the status quo.

“I thought they were pretty tough mistakes to be honest. I’ve kept over here before, it’s not the easiest place. When the ball is spitting and bouncing out of the rough, it can be quite difficult,” he said.

“I actually thought Jonny kept really well right throughout. If you look at the way he progressed throughout the game, I think he found a natural rhythm.

“We know what he offers with the bat, him coming in at seven is a real weapon for us as well, so I think he’ll be better for the run.”

Heather Knight wants England to exploit the increased exposure from a seminal Women’s Ashes series, insisting she and her team take a responsibility to inspire the next generation “personally”.

England will try to wrestle the urn from all-conquering Australia’s grasp in the multi-format series, beginning with a lone Test at Trent Bridge where around 15,000 tickets have been sold across five days.

On the eve of the curtain-raiser, Knight senses an opportunity to follow in the footsteps of the England football team, who sent the nation into raptures with their triumphant Euro 2022 campaign.

Doing so will be no mean feat as Australia have not lost to England since 2014, hold both limited-overs World Cups and won gold at last year’s Commonwealth Games, but Knight is in an optimistic mood.

She said: “One of our mantras is to entertain and inspire. In the women’s game, we take it quite personally that we want to promote the game in the right way, get people behind us and inspire them.

“It’s super special and it’s set up to be a really amazing Ashes series that’s probably going to be the most visible series outside of World Cups that we’ve ever had. We’re keen to try and maximise that.

“Women’s sport is just in such an amazing place in the country in the moment and we want to be a part of that. What the Lionesses did last summer, we loved watching it and want to be a part of that.

“We know we’re up against a very good Australian team but we’ve got the opportunity to do something special and part of that is bringing the country with us on that journey.”

Bethany England admits she “screamed the house down” when she found out the “big risk” of her mid-season transfer from Chelsea to Tottenham had paid off with a recall for this summer’s World Cup.

Having been part of the England squad that won the Euros last July and played in subsequent matches in September, the 29-year-old forward then found herself being omitted by boss Sarina Wiegman.

England was seeing limited game time for Chelsea, starting only twice in the Women’s Super League for the champions in the first half of the season, and she moved to Tottenham in January.

She went on to register 12 goals in as many league starts for Spurs, and a return to the international fold followed as on May 31 she was included in Wiegman’s 23-player group for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand that gets under way next month.

On her reaction to the recall, England said: “It was amazing for me.

“I think I’d done everything I could to get put in this position. I worked as best as I could, I was scoring the goals, so the question was just left to Sarina.

“I got the call, tried to play it nice and cool – but I hung up the phone and screamed the house down!

“The first thing I did was ring my mum, ring my partner. Obviously I was elated, it’s been a long time since I’ve been back in this environment. It’s just a pleasure to be back here wearing the badge and I’m really excited for the summer.”

England, who has 11 goals in 21 caps, added: “I think the situation I was in (at Chelsea), I wasn’t getting used, I was stuck on the bench and as Sarina said, rightly, I wasn’t getting picked (for England) because I wasn’t playing the minutes.

“It was up to me to make sure I was not only getting the minutes but making them count and I think I did that at Spurs. I can’t thank them enough for giving me the opportunity to go out and play and be happy again.

“Ultimately it’s my career and I had to take it into my own hands and make sure that I put myself in the best position.

“I think it was just first and foremost I want to be back on the pitch, playing minutes and scoring and I’m glad I did that.

“Obviously at the back of my mind the World Cup was creeping up, I’d not been selected for a couple of camps leading into Christmas. Every player wants to be part of these big moments representing your country, going to big tournaments, so I think that was definitely a key factor in it.

“But ultimately, I think in myself I knew that I wasn’t happy. I knew that I’d been in a situation where it was going on for too long and I needed to make change.

“Change can be scary and I’ve never dealt well with change, but luckily I hit the ground running and I’m just thankful that it turned out well.”

England left Chelsea having been with them since 2016, netted 74 times for the club and won multiple trophies.

“It was a big risk, I’d been at Chelsea for seven years, that was a big part of my professional career and I didn’t really like the thought of change,” she said.

“But ultimately I didn’t want to be sat in a position where I didn’t try to give my everything to go. I could have stayed at Chelsea, could have stayed on the bench, in my comfort zone. But then I’d have been watching other people going out there to Australia, when I know it’s something I would have regretted looking back on.

“So I’m glad the risk paid off – and even if it didn’t and I didn’t come, I could have at least looked at myself in the mirror knowing I did everything I could to put myself on that flight.”

Australia’s two-wicket victory over England in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston ranks alongside some of the greatest matches played between cricket’s oldest rivals.

Here, the PA news agency highlights some key stats from an incredible game.

Culture clash

A big part of the allure surrounding this match and the rest of the series relates to the styles of cricket that both teams play, which could hardly be more different.

Australia play tough, attritional cricket designed to grind down their opposition, while England have adopted an ultra-aggressive style under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, aimed at generating results – whether that be a win or a loss.

This clash of ideologies was on full display in Birmingham.

Australia and England scored a near-identical number of runs (668 compared with 666) and lost the same number of wickets (18), but Pat Cummins’ side faced 1,252 deliveries compared with England’s 866.

Australia were happy to bide their time, scoring at a rate of 53.35 runs per 100 balls on average, while Stokes’ men looked to force a result by striking at 76.91.

The difference in approach was embodied by the teams’ key batters – England’s reverse-ramping Joe Root faced just 207 balls for his 164 runs across both innings, while Australia’s stoic Usman Khawaja scored his 206 runs from 518 deliveries and became the 13th player in history to bat on all five days of a Test match.

Ebb and flow

Australia’s win was especially thrilling because of the way the match seemed to swing back and forth throughout.

Just seven runs separated the sides after the first innings, in which England surprisingly declared on 393 for eight and Australia lost their last four wickets for 14 runs to be bowled out for 386.

The drama went up a notch in the second innings, however, as both teams repeatedly threatened to get ahead before losing a wicket.

Eighteen of the 19 second-innings’ partnerships reached double figures but only four passed 50, with the highest being Australia’s opening stand of 61 between Khawaja and David Warner.

Similarly, 19 of the 21 batters scored 10 or more runs, with only Zak Crawley (seven) and Steve Smith (six) falling in single digits.

Redemption

Australia captain Cummins and spin bowler Nathan Lyon were key figures in the thrilling Edgbaston victory, having also played a central role in a heartbreaking defeat at Headingley in 2019.

Cummins conceded the winning runs four years ago as Stokes led England to an unlikely win, while Lyon missed a crucial run-out chance in the penultimate over.

This time, the pair inspired their side to victory with an unbroken partnership of 55 from a perilous position of 227 for eight when Alex Carey – the last recognised batter – was dismissed.

Cummins and Lyon had already performed heroics with the ball to limit Australia’s target to 281.

They took a combined eight wickets for 143 runs from 42.2 overs in England’s second innings, compared with two for 121 from 24 overs by Australia’s remaining bowlers – Josh Hazlewood, Scott Boland and Cameron Green.

Lauren Filer will make her England debut in the one-off Test that marks the start of the multi-format Women’s Ashes after being preferred to fellow seamer Issy Wong.

England have announced their XI, 24 hours out from the start of the Trent Bridge match, with 32-year-old batter Danni Wyatt set for her Test debut after making 245 international white-ball appearances.

Despite being wicketless in a warm-up against an Australia A side last week, England have seen enough from Filer to nudge her ahead of the highly-rated Wong for the five-day fixture.

Filer has taken eight wickets in four matches in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy in 2023 and five in the Charlotte Edwards Cup, and the 22-year-old is set to be thrust into the biggest test of her career.

She was one of two uncapped players named in England’s Test squad with head coach Jon Lewis praising her as a “genuine wicket-taking threat with good pace and swing” and offering a “point of difference”.

Bowling all-rounder Danielle Gibson will have to wait for her first England cap, with the hosts choosing to bolster their batting as they go in search of a first series win over Australia since 2014.

Wyatt has registered in excess of 4,000 runs in the shorter formats in an international career that started in March 2010 – including a 56-ball T20 hundred against Australia in Canberra in November 2017.

She made a quickfire 37 off 46 balls for England A in a practice match against a full Australia side last week.

England’s Joe Root has leapfrogged Ashes rivals Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head to top the Test batting rankings.

The Yorkshireman’s performance in scoring a combined 164 runs – 118 not out and 46 – at Edgbaston in the first Test defeat to Australia propelled him five places up the International Cricket Council’s rankings.

Labuschagne dropped two places to third after making just 13, including a first-ball duck in the first innings, with Head falling to fourth despite a first-innings half-century.

Edgbaston man-of-the-match Usman Khawaja, the fourth Australian in the top 10 along with Steve Smith, moved up two places to seventh after scores of 141 and 65.

England’s next-best performer is Harry Brook, who rose five spots to 13th on the back of scores of 32 and 46.

James Anderson retained his place as the second best bowler in the world, despite a disappointing display in Birmingham, while Ollie Robinson moved into the top five with five wickets in the first Test.

Meanwhile, following a thrilling final day at Edgbaston, England and Australia have both been fined 40 per cent of their match fees and deducted two World Test Championship points for slow over-rates.

Despite serving up a breathless finale in which the tourists snatched a two-wicket victory on a see-saw fifth evening, both teams have been punished for failing to get through their overs quickly enough.

Captains Ben Stokes and Pat Cummins pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the proposed sanctions, so there was no need for formal hearings, the ICC said.

As the match was the first in the new WTC cycle, that means England’s reward for the attacking tactics that moved the game towards its dramatic conclusion despite long rain delays is to sit on minus two in the table.

Australia picked up 12 points for their Cummins-inspired win, so drop back to 10.

All 22 players have also lost 40 per cent of their match fees, which equates to around £6,000 for the English contingent.

England are waking up to defeat in the first Test against Australia for the third Ashes series in a row.

The tone of the game may have been different, with Ben Stokes’ side making most of the running across five enthralling days to set up a finish, but the end result was the same as 2017, 2019 and 2021.

Australia held the urn aloft in each of those series, flexing their muscles in matching 4-0 wins on home soil and retaining after a 2-2 draw on tour four years ago.

England will now need to overturn a 1-0 deficit with four games to play, but what should they do to make that happen?

Keep the faith in ‘Bazball’

Defeat against their bitter rivals will hurt, but now is not the time to rip up a playbook that has delivered 11 wins from 14 Test matches under Ben Stokes’ captaincy.

In particular, England have proven that their ultra-aggressive batting style can hurt an Australia attack who hoped they would be immune.

They scored at a rollicking 5.03 an over in the first innings and kept it up at 4.11 on a trickier surface in the second and landed important blows along the way.

Scott Boland went around the park for the first time in his Test career and Joe Root’s reverse ramps will have tested the egos of the Australian quicks.

Fix Moeen’s finger or find a replacement

There was always going to be an element of risk in summoning Moeen Ali out of international retirement when Jack Leach went down with a stress fracture.

The 36-year-old last played first-class cricket almost two years ago and his lack of conditioning came back to haunt England when his right index finger blistered then burst open.

He found it difficult to grip and rip the ball from that point onward and was able to offer just seven overs on day five as part-timer Joe Root picked up the bulk of the work.

If the medical staff are confident they can rectify the situation in the coming days Moeen should get another chance at Lord’s, but if there is a chance of history repeating then Surrey’s Will Jacks looks like the next man in and should be called up.

Dial down the declaration addiction

For the second game in a row England have lost a Test match after declaring eight down in the first innings.

New Zealand edged them by a single run in Wellington back in February and now Australia have snuck across the line.

Stokes’ penchant for calling an early end to his side’s run-scoring has been a fascinating facet of his captaincy and at times has worked brilliantly – including three Tests ago in Mount Maunganui.

But pulling out after just 78 overs, the earliest ever declaration in the Ashes, may have been slightly too radical. Root was racing along on 118 not out and it would not have taken him long to score enough runs to alter the final outcome.

Rally around Bairstow

By choosing to drop Ben Foakes, a player Stokes has frequently described as the best wicketkeeper in world cricket, England opened themselves up to criticism. But with Harry Brook undroppable after a prolific winter and the star performer of 2022, Jonny Bairstow, fit again, Foakes was the fall guy.

Bairstow is an experienced gloveman but put down at least three chances that he would have hoped to take, racking up a tab that his dashing 78 in the first innings did not fully clear.

Those who advocate a Foakes recall at Lord’s can think again, with the squad already announced and Bairstow going nowhere.

For now they need to get behind a player who thrives on confidence and certainty over his role. Neither he nor England can afford any more costly slip-ups, but showing faith might be the best way to avoid them next week.

Let Wood make his mark

One thing England lacked in their XI at Edgbaston was outright pace, a quality Mark Wood brings in abundance. With Jofra Archer and Olly Stone both out injured, he is the only man available who can routinely clear 90mph.

He is best used in short, sharp spells and concerns over Stokes’ ability to share the workload may have played a part in him missing out in the first Test. But on a Lord’s pitch that can play flat, he might be just the tonic.

Wood was England’s most impressive performer Down Under in the 2021-22 Ashes and already has Australia’s respect.

After an unusually quiet outing, record wicket-taker James Anderson could be in line to stand down but it might also be possible to lean on Root’s spin and choose a four-strong pace cartel. Either way, it feels like Wood is a game breaker they cannot afford to overlook.

England and Australia have been fined 40 per cent of their match fees and deducted two World Test Championship points for slow over-rates in their thrilling Ashes opener at Edgbaston.

Despite serving up a breathless finale in Birmingham, where the tourists snatched a two-wicket victory on a see-saw fifth evening, both teams have been punished for failing to get through their overs quickly enough.

Captains Ben Stokes and Pat Cummins pled guilty to the offence and accepted the proposed sanctions, so there was no need for formal hearings, the International Cricket Council said.

As the match was the first in the new WTC cycle, that means England’s reward for the attacking tactics that moved the game towards its dramatic conclusion despite long rain delays is to sit on minus two in the table. Australia picked up 12 points for their Cummins-inspired win, so drop back to 10.

All 22 players have also lost 40 per cent of their match fees, which equates to around £6,000 for the English contingent.

Mark Ramprakash expects Mark Wood to return to the England line-up for the second Ashes Test at Lord’s.

Australia won the opening game of the series by two wickets on a dramatic final day at Edgbaston as the hosts failed to break a 55-run match-winning ninth-wicket stand between Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon.

Former England batter and batting coach Ramprakash, who played 52 Tests, reckons the bowling attack will be given serious consideration by coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes.

“By and large, England will be happy they played the brand of cricket they wanted to,” Ramprakash, 53, told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“The only thing is, they have asked for quite flat wickets which are batter-friendly which can, to a degree, negate England’s greatest bowler in Jimmy Anderson, who only took one wicket in the game.

“His form will perhaps be a bit of a concern going forward to Lord’s and they will have to make a call on selection.

“It was a big thing for Moeen Ali to come back in but, with the amount of overs he bowled, he ripped the skin off his spinning finger and that impaired his performance in the second innings and that is something they will have to look at very closely.

“I expect Mark Wood to be seriously considered because England need some pace in their line-up.

“It is just injecting a bit of life. If Moeen is struggling, what variety do England have in their attack if the wicket is flat? I do expect Wood to come back in.”

Australia drew first blood in the 2023 Ashes as Pat Cummins led his side to a heart-pounding victory over England at Edgbaston.

The first Test of the series swung backwards and forwards for the full five days, before the tourists finally secured a two-wicket win at 7.20pm on day five – 80 minutes after the scheduled close.

Captain Cummins played the decisive hand, hitting an unbeaten 44 in a ninth-wicket stand of 55 with Nathan Lyon. Watching Australia chase down 281 was a gut-wrenching result for an England team that had been responsible for making a result possible in the first place.

A frustratingly placid pitch and two rain-shortened days meant a draw should have been the likeliest outcome, but their rapid rate of scoring – 5.03 an over in the first innings and 4.11 in the second – moved the game forward at pace. Ben Stokes’ audacious declaration to set up the game had a similar effect.

Stokes looked to have set up an England triumph when he defied his long-standing knee injury to remove player-of-the-match Usman Khawaja for 65, but in the end they could not finish the job and will head to Lord’s down 1-0 with four to play.

Selection gamble leaves England in a spin

When England persuaded Moeen Ali to come out of retirement after almost two years as a white-ball specialist, they knew it was a roll of the dice. In the end the gamble cost them during a tense finale as the all-rounder was unable to play a full role due to a painful open blister on his right index finger. He was able to contribute just seven overs at a time when he should have been a key weapon, with Joe Root’s part-time off-breaks accounting for 15. Moeen did manage to dismiss Travis Head, but he was also the team’s most expensive bowler and was a bystander at the business end. Will England double down in the second Test or send for back-up?

Half-chances add to England’s missed opportunities

Wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow faced criticism for his glovework earlier in the match, with four possible chances getting past him. But England saw another couple of fiendishly difficult openings go begging off Australia’s match-winning duo. Root got a hand to a low return catch while Cummins was still in single figures, but could only parry it, while Stokes came desperately close to a sensational take in the deep as Lyon hit out. He leapt into the air and plucked the ball out of the sky, but could not keep it under control as he came crashing to the ground. Had either of those fiendishly hard chances stuck, England would surely have been celebrating at the close.

Australia’s best ever Ashes chasesBig numberView from the dressing roomWhat comes next

While the dust settles on a thrilling week, things are only beginning to get going in the women’s Ashes. Attention moves quickly from West Midlands to East Midlands, with the one-off Test between Heather Knight’s England and Alyssa Healy’s Australia starting in Nottingham on Thursday. For the men’s squads there is time for a few days off before renewing hostilities at Lord’s next Wednesday.

Gareth Southgate has indicated an ongoing lack of game time at Manchester United could impact Harry Maguire’s international role as the England boss braces for summer movement in his squad.

Monday’s 7-0 Old Trafford annihilation of North Macedonia made it four wins from as many Group C games, meaning it is a case of when rather than if their place at Euro 2024 is secured.

June’s matches were played out against a backdrop of talk about England players’ club future, with injured Jude Bellingham completing a big-money move to Real Madrid during a camp that ended with Arsenal’s club-record offer for West Ham skipper Declan Rice.

Harry Kane, Kyle Walker, Mason Mount, Jordan Pickford and James Maddison are also the subject of summer interest, while the likes of Kalvin Phillips, Conor Gallagher and Harry Maguire have decisions to make on their future.

Phillips says he intends to fight for his place at Manchester City and England stalwart Maguire continues to be linked with a move due to the Manchester United captain’s drop in game time and form.

“He is captain of an incredible football club so that is a difficult situation,” Southgate said.

“He will obviously be frustrated not to play as much as he would like but I think he has handled that really well, he has publicly talked well about supporting the team.

“We have got a few players with a lot going on, really.

“They have managed to park that brilliantly in their period with us but there is potentially quite a few moves this summer that would be hugely important for their own careers, never mind for us.”

Asked if Maguire needs to play a bit more, Southgate said: “It’s clear, really.

“I think him and Kalvin are the two who have played the least in terms of guys in this squad this season.

“But we have gone with them because in these two positions we think they are still ahead of others that might have played more.

“But it is then hard when that competition gets more even and you are not playing regularly to see their form, see their fitness, so that is the challenge for everybody.”

Maguire was named in the Euro 2020 team of the tournament for his excellent displays in England’s run to the final two years ago, as was Raheem Sterling.

The 28-year-old endured a tough 2022-23 season following his £47.5million switch to Chelsea and missed June’s fixtures as he recovers from a nagging hamstring issue.

“He’s a fighter,” Southgate said of 82-cap forward Sterling. “What we know is he’s scored an incredible amount of goals for us, important goals, that’s now a more even competition.

“In the past he was the name on the team sheet. we knew his goals were critical. There is now more competition there, but I will expect him to respond.

“He’s not been happy with this season at his club this year, the part he has to get right this summer is his physical fitness and I would expect him to be flying next year.

“If we have all of those players available when we need them then that’s brilliant but it rarely happens.”

As for Southgate, the England boss says his biggest challenge is to “keep pushing this team” and looking for improvements – a pursuit of progress that saw Trent Alexander-Arnold successfully deployed in midfield this month.

The Liverpool right-back scored in a man-of-the-match display against Malta and produced a fine assist in Monday’s 7-0 drubbing of North Macedonia.

Those displays means Southgate “would have no hesitation” picking Alexander-Arnold as a midfielder against even better teams going forwards.

“He’s an exceptional player for Liverpool in whatever position he plays,” the England boss added.#

“It’s not for me (to say what he needs to do at his club). He has produced any number of assists for Liverpool and has had a massive impact on their team.
Our team is different, the balance of our team is different.

“And the way we have been able to play is different, and the way we defended is slightly different.

“The most pleasing thing for me is that he has probably had his most enjoyable England camp ever. He’s desperate to be a part of the team, he has shown everybody what he can do in that role.

“I felt that way for a long time but when he is not doing those things regularly it is harder to transfer. His performances have spoken for themselves.”

Jack Grealish has made no apologies for his high-profile celebrations at the end of a mammoth season as he claimed any “party boy” image is misplaced.

The England international helped Manchester City to an historic treble, culminating in a Champions League final win over Inter Milan.

After the match, Grealish was the centre of attention for City’s celebrations as he drank and partied with his team-mates.

Much was made of his approach but he still reported for England duty and came off the bench in Monday’s 7-0 win over North Macedonia.

“I don’t think it is a party boy thing,” he said when asked about the response to his revelry.

“I would never sit here and lie to you and say ‘Yeah, I don’t drink and I don’t party’ because I do but then there’s so many people that will come here and say to you ‘I don’t do this, I don’t do that’ when they do.

“I’m just truthful because when you see me doing anything, you’d be like: ‘Oh, hold on. He said a few weeks ago in an interview that he didn’t do that’.

“But listen, I just enjoy myself, I’m living my dream of playing for the best club in the world in my opinion, we’ve just won the treble so I’m going to obviously have a break now with my family and my friends and then I’ll be raring to go again in four weeks.

“I knew (what) I was doing, that’s just the way I am, I’m like that when I party usually. Actually, I’m not like that usually but we’ve won the treble and it’s something that (may) never happen again.

“So I went and enjoyed myself and I wasn’t the only one – I think a lot of the time you’ll see everyone recording me, I could show you all this stuff of other people where they were the same.

“Listen, we all enjoyed ourselves, other people enjoy themselves where the cameras weren’t but that was just me enjoying myself, I’d had the most successful season of my life.

“It is now June 19, I came into training last year on July 13. Years ago, you’d have a season for nine months, I’ve just laid out a 12-month season. I’ve been into a World Cup, I’ve won three trophies and then I’m going to be back training now in four weeks or so, why not enjoy myself?”

Grealish said he had not been spoken to by England manager Gareth Southgate as he met up with the squad and felt he contributed as normal.

England won both games to take a massive step to Euro 2024 qualification and Grealish reported for duty as expected.

“I don’t know what you guys read and think sometimes. I have a great relationship with him (Southgate), honestly. A brilliant relationship,” he added.

“I kind of knew in the back of my head that I wouldn’t play on the Friday (against Malta). But even so I came into camp on Tuesday night, I was a bit hungover but I wasn’t drunk or anything.

“I came into camp with the other guys, we slept then woke up and trained on Wednesday. We trained on Thursday and, like I said, in the back of my mind, I knew I wasn’t going to play on the Friday.

“Then on the Saturday, I trained and trained well. Then on the Sunday. I thought it was going to be a toss up with who plays.

“I came on (against Macedonia) and I’m just happy. I’ve had a brilliant season, the most successful season of my life and I think there is a time now I can just sit and relax.

“My emotions have been so high. When I was sitting in the camp on Thursday, it was the biggest high I’d been on in my whole life at the weekend.

“You come into the camp, you sit on your own in your room and think ‘Will I ever feel that high again?’.”

Australia captain Pat Cummins led his side to a remarkable two-wicket victory in the Ashes opener at Edgbaston, holding his nerve in a heart-pounding chase that left Ben Stokes and his England team distraught.

The shadow of the famous 2005 Test between the old rivals had loomed large over this final day but where England edged that one in a dramatic two-run win, Cummins exorcised some of those ghosts as he ushered the tourists home amid unbearable pressure.

Cummins made an outstanding, unbeaten 44 as he led a match-winning stand of 55 with number 10 Nathan Lyon, who clung on for 16 not out. Between them they ensured Australia successfully completed their second highest chase in England conditions, reaching a target of 281 that had seemed beyond them less than an hour earlier.

Stokes looked to have dealt the decisive blow when he landed the key wicket of Usman Khawaja, defying the aches and pains of his chronic knee problems to dismiss the man who seemed to hold the result in his hands.

But the England skipper’s Midas touch evaded him when he leapt to pluck an outrageous one-handed catch out of the sky, only for the ball to slip through his fingers as he fell to earth. Lyon, on two at the time, was able to breathe again and kept his captain company until the climax.

The end came in agonising fashion at 7.20pm – 80 minutes after the scheduled close due to morning rain – when Cummins steered the ball to deep third and a sprawling Harry Brook parried the ball for four.

England’s Rachel Daly says happiness has been a key factor in her form as she prepares for this summer’s World Cup on the back of a superb 2022-23 season.

Following a move from the Houston Dash to Aston Villa last summer shortly after helping England win the Euros, Daly went on to score 30 goals in all competitions for her new club.

That included a haul of 22 in the Women’s Super League which gave her the Golden Boot as Villa achieved a fifth-placed finish, while she also netted five times for her country across the season.

The 31-year-old said: “I’ve had a pretty good year, it’s been a good year for me.

“I think I can put it down to my happiness, the way Carla (Ward, the Villa boss) has given me freedom at the club to play my own sort of game, the team around me has been brilliant and Sarina (Wiegman, the England manager) again at international level. I’d say it’s probably the best season I’ve had in my career.”

Daly joined Villa having spent a decade playing for teams in the United States, apart from a loan spell in the WSL with West Ham in 2020-21.

She added: “A lot has changed for me personally since the last tournament.

“Moving home – I’ve been away for 10 years, so I think mentally I’m in a way better place. I needed to be home and playing in this league was something I wanted to do and revisit again.

“A different position for me in terms of internationally to club level. A lot has changed for me, but I think you can all tell that I’m playing with a smile on my face and enjoying my football, so long may that continue.”

Daly, Wiegman’s starting left-back throughout the triumphant Euros campaign but recently used in attack by the Dutchwoman, was listed as a forward when England’s 23-player squad for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, which gets under way on July 20, was announced last month.

Regarding positions, Daly said: “That’s Sarina’s decision, and I’ll respect whatever she chooses and I’m ready to play wherever I’m needed.”

Daly said there was a “complete healthy competition” between her and fellow England strikers Alessia Russo and Bethany England, adding: “There’s no ‘I’m the best’, we’re all great friends. The competition is we’re pushing each other and we’ll continue to push each other.”

Asked if she felt the England number nine position was up for grabs, Daly said: “I think every position is. Nothing’s set until July 22 (when England play their opening group game against Haiti in Brisbane).

“But I don’t think anyone is really focusing on that, it’s just, ‘How can we push each other to be the best?’ And whatever Sarina chooses is what she chooses and we all support it.”

Daly was speaking at St George’s Park after England trained in front of the media for the first time in their pre-World Cup camp, which got started on Monday, three weeks after the conclusion of the WSL season.

Daly said: “For me, it’s perfect and I think the girls agreed on that. We’ve had enough time to have a rest and a holiday and completely switch off mentally and physically. I feel like we’re in a great spot.”

Defender Millie Bright, skipper for the World Cup in the absence of ruled-out ACL injury victim Leah Williamson, trained separately from the group on Tuesday, working on an individual programme, as did midfielder Jordan Nobbs.

The Lionesses face Portugal in a warm-up match at Milton Keynes on July 1 before flying to Australia four days later.