James McAtee believes Thomas Tuchel’s presence at the Under-21 European Championship final will be “extra motivation” for England ahead of their showdown with Germany on Saturday.
The Young Lions’ victory over the Netherlands this week put them within one match of retaining their crown in Slovakia.
Senior coach Tuchel is set to make the journey to Bratislava as England meet his home nation, who cruised past France 3-0 in their semi-final.
Putting in the FINAL preparations, our #YoungLions 💪🦁 pic.twitter.com/z9eNAewU9D
— England (@England) June 27, 2025
“If he does come it will be extra motivation for the lads to win,” Young Lions skipper McAtee said. “More reason to impress the manager.”
Harry McKirdy requiring surgery which could sideline Hibs forward for six monthsThe British and Irish Lions tour of Australia: Everything you need to know
The likes of Liam Delap, Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden have been on the scoresheet at the Club World Cup for their respective sides as they bid to earn places in England’s World Cup squad next summer.
Tuchel has been in the United States monitoring his players, with English clubs Chelsea and Manchester City advancing into the knockout stages.
“Thomas’ support has been very strong from the start,” Lee Carsley added.
“He’s at the Club World Cup. The travel arrangements have been made, so hopefully he gets here on time.”
Germany are unbeaten in the tournament so far and beat England 2-1 in the group stage.
Striker Nick Woltemade, who has drawn interest from Bayern this summer, has scored six goals in four appearances in Slovakia and will be one for England to keep an eye on.
Lee Carsley drew confidence for England’s run to the final despite losing to Germany in Group B
Lee Carsley drew confidence for England’s run to the final despite losing to Germany in Group B(Martin Rickett/PA)
“After the game, I was more than confident that this team had clicked and we were in a good position,” Carsley said on England’s Group B defeat to their fellow finalists.
“I thought that we’d be there. I wasn’t sure if they would be there. I was confident that we were going to do well in this tournament. I’ve got a lot of belief in this team.
“I knew the second half against Germany, we clicked. In the first half, it would be fair to say, especially the first 20 minutes, we did not play well.”