England U21 manager Lee Carsley has admitted the brawl that sparked following a challenge on Newcastle United star Tino Livramento was “not nice” to see.
Livramento is starring for the England U21s this summer and could yet follow in Anthony Gordon’s footsteps.
Indeed, Gordon won the European Championships with the Young Lions in 2023 and his Newcastle United teammate has now taken a major step towards following suit.
Carsley’s side reached the semi-finals of the competition by beating Spain in an ill-tempered quarter-final on Saturday night.
Elliot Anderson sealed the impressive 3-1 win with a late penalty, though it was a challenge on Livramento that sparked fury.
Tino Livramento playing for England U21s against Spain U21s.
Photo by Christian Hofer/Getty Images
Lee Carsley issues verdict on Tino Livramento incident
Towards the closing stages of the game, Spain star Marc Pubill lunged into a wild tackle on Livramento when he was shielding the ball in the corner.
Luckily, no contact was made but the Newcastle star was obviously annoyed by the intent. Livramento squared up to Pubill and when the full-time whistle went a little later, tempers flared even further.
The two sets of players clashed in a brawl, although England didn’t get any red cards.
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Speaking to The Sun, Carsley said: “You try and be as respectful to both sides but you can see how much it means to the players. To represent your country in a quarter-final, it means a lot.
“We probably have to give them a bit of leeway. Thankfully it didn’t go over the top but it’s still not nice to see.
“We are always trying to fly the flag and encourage younger players especially to take up football and enjoy the game… but the passion was just a bit much.”
How did Tino Livramento play for England U21s against Spain U21s?
Once again, Livramento was excellent for his country.
Per Fot Mob data, the full-back completed his attempted dribble, made three passes in the opposition’s final third, won all three of his tackles and made three clearances.
Spain U21 vs England U21 statistics Tino Livramento
Touches 49
Dribbles 1
Tackles 3
Ground duels won 5
Ball recoveries 6
Tino Livramento’s stats for England U21s vs Spain U21s, data via FotMob
He also recovered the ball six times and didn’t lose it once, while winning all five of his ground duels.
Eddie Howe would no doubt have been wincing watching the tackle but, thankfully, Livramento emerged unscathed.
Surely, at some point, Livramento has to be trusted in the senior England side by Thomas Tuchel. With a World Cup around the corner, he could play a very big part.