Harvey Elliott, a Liverpool player, lit up Goodison Park in the rout of Northern Ireland by England’s Under-21 team.
A classy double from the midfielder inspired Young Lions’ 3-0 victory on Tuesday.
Tyler Morton (on loan from Hull) scored the first goal for the Under-21s, while his Reds teammate has now netted five goals during the Euro 2025 qualification.
They are now in second place, just three points ahead of Ukraine after they beat Azerbaijan by a 1-0 score.
The Young Lions will have to play catch up in what is likely to become a shootout in which the winner of the group wins.
The chase is clear and they are capable of achieving it. While Lee Carsley may say differently, his last match with the youngsters was an easy win after dominating from the start.
Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite – the captain of the home team – was first to blow a good opportunity when he missed Tino Livramento’s flick on as England struggled early to get past Northern Ireland’s resolute backline led by Ruairi McConville and Michael Forbes.
Noni Madueke’s curling shot was wide on 20 minutes, and Jay Stansfield missed a half-volley off Hayden Hackney’s cross. But these were only half-chances rather than Young Lions cutting through their opponent.
The hosts continued to press and dominate, James Trafford was a spectator at the goal. Elliott fired wide, but the killer shot continued to elude them – until Northern Ireland finally succumbed to the pressure in the 31st minute.
It didn’t matter that it was a cross misplaced, as Madueke and Stansfield were unable to intercept the centre of Madueke. The ball reached Morton at the perimeter of the box but he only took a shot low.
The victory of England was never in doubt. They were missing something in the middle without Cole Palmer and Rico Lewis who had been elevated last week to the senior squad. But Madueke, Jamie Bynoe, and Jamie Bynoe Gittens provided enough support on the wings.
Chelsea’s Madueke set up Hackney for a miss before Elliott added a second goal after half an hour.
Terry Devlin dragged the Liverpool player 25 yards before he exacted his revenge with a downward-swinging free kick.
Josh Clarke denied Madueke as England sought a third goal. Elliott found the ball with just 10 minutes remaining. Elliott, 20, ran on Morton’s ball, which exposed a huge hole in Northern Ireland’s midfield. He produced a chip that lobbed Clarke, who was heading towards him.
Clarke’s fine save prevented Elliott from completing a hattrick.
