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First Team

Lewis Cook in England Under-20 World Cup squad

Written by Iain Pearce

The England squad for the FIFA U20 World Cup in South Korea has been named by head coach Paul Simpson.

After a successful campaign this season, which has seen the Young Lions beat nations such as Germany, Netherlands, France and USA in a series of warm-up competitions, Simpson has narrowed down his 21-man squad.

And the group meet up at St. George’s Park on Monday afternoon before they head east to Osaka in Japan on Tuesday, where they will spend a six-day training camp ahead of the tournament.

Simpson has been able to call upon the majority of the group who have featured throughout the season, many of who were part of the U19s squad who secured World Cup qualification following their performance at the European Championship Finals last July.

AFC Bournemouth midfielder Lewis Cook and Middlesbrough defender Dael Fry will join the squad in South Korea after next weekend’s Premier League games.

Meanwhile, Patrick Roberts, Axel Tuanzebe and Izzy Brown have been declared unavailable for the trip due to first-team commitments with Celtic, Manchester United and Huddersfield Town respectively.

Despite this, the squad retains plenty of international experience with all of the players having been capped at U20 level and below previously.

England kick-off their World Cup against Argentina at the Jeonju World Cup Stadium on Saturday 20 May, before they tackle Guinea at the same venue on Tuesday 23 May.

The final group game comes against host nation Korea Republic in Suwon on Friday 26 May, with the Young Lions hoping to extend their involvement beyond there as the competition heads into the knock-out stages.

Goalkeepers
1. Freddie Woodman (Newcastle United)
13. Dean Henderson (Manchester United)
21. Luke Southwood (Reading)

Defenders
2. Jonjoe Kenny (Everton)
3. Callum Connolly (Everton)
5. Fikayo Tomori (Chelsea)
6. Jake Clarke-Salter (Chelsea)
12. Rico Henry (Brentford)
14. Kyle Walker-Peters (Tottenham Hotspur)
15. Dael Fry (Middlesbrough)

Midfielders
4. Lewis Cook (AFC Bournemouth)
7. Josh Onomah (Tottenham Hotspur)
8. Ainsley Maitland-Niles (Arsenal)
18. Kieran Dowell (Everton)
19. Sheyi Ojo (Liverpool)
20. Ovie Ejaria (Liverpool)

Forwards
9. Adam Armstrong (Newcastle United)
10. Dominic Solanke (Chelsea)
11. Ademola Lookman (Everton)
16. Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton)
17. Harrison Chapman (Middlesbrough)