Report: Germany 5-5 England MU19s

England and Germany played out one of the most extraordinary matches in the history of the UEFA Under-19 European Championship to keep their qualification chances alive in Bucharest.

The 2022 champions fought back from a four-goal deficit to turn this Group B fixture on its head in eleven incredible second-half minutes.

The game brought together two of European football’s traditional powerhouses and assumed even greater importance following the Netherlands' 2-0 win over Norway earlier in the day – a result which assured the Dutch of a place in the tournament’s final four.

But no-one could have predicted the drama that was about to unfold, particularly after a lightning-fast opening to the game which saw Germany take the lead after just seven minutes.

Said Al Mala was a constant menace on the German left flank and after a mazy run, he picked out Barcelona’s Noah Darvic who slotted home his country’s first goal of the tournament.

And when Al Mala doubled the lead on 31 minutes, England’s hopes of making it to the last four appeared to be hanging by a thread.

Will Antwi's team pulled one back on 35 minutes, as a Jayden Meghoma cross eluded Ethan Wheatley but found Josh King who lashed it home brilliantly from 12 yards out.

In the dying minutes of a pulsating first half, Germany scored twice to re-establish a comfortable lead.

A fortuitous deflection off Abbott from a Kjell Watjen strike left Tommy Setford stranded in the England goal on 42 minutes to make it 3-1.

And just seconds before the half-time whistle blew, an in-swinging corner from the enterprising Darvich was headed home by Leopold Wurm.

When Germany made it 5-1 courtesy of another Al Mala goal just three minutes into the second half, it looked as though it would be a long 45 minutes for the Young Lions side.

Instead, they performed one of the great England comebacks.

It was started by Wheatley on 52 minutes, with the Manchester United man tucking home after Konstantin Heide had spilled an Abbott header.

The goal visibly lifted England’s confidence – handing them the belief that Germany’s lead was far from insurmountable.

A Reiss Russell-Denny strike just three minutes later further eroded the deficit, before Abbott exacted revenge for his own goal by heading home from a corner to bring England to within one goal of a Germany side that was now reeling.

The crowd inside the Stadionul Arcul de Triumf could scarcely believe what they were witnessing, and England soon found themselves in dreamland.

On 63 minutes the comeback was complete, as Crystal Palace’s Jesse Derry scored after Heide had spilled a cross from Kaden Young.

That goal confirmed the match as the highest scoring game in the history of the tournament and there was no let-up in the excitement as both sides battled for a potentially precious winner.

In the heat of the Romanian capital, these two sides battled each other to a standstill.

A Setford save from a Paris Brunner header in injury time was as close as either side came to grabbing all three points before Caleb Kporha rifled a shot just over moments later following a powerful run forward.

The result leaves Germany bottom of the group, while England are in second spot to set up a thrilling final-day scenario against the Dutch for a Young Lions side that have already shown an incredible capacity for bouncing back.

England: 1 Tommy Setford (Arsenal), 4 Stephen Mfuni (Manchester City), 5 Zach Abbott (Nottingham Forest), 12 Caleb Kporha (Crystal Palace), 20 Jayden Meghoma (Brentford), 6 Kiano Dyer (Chelsea), 10 Josh King (Fulham), 16 Reiss Russell-Denny (Tottenham Hotspur), 7 Samuel Amo-Ameyaw (RC Strasbourg), 9 Ethan Wheatley, 19 Jesse Derry (Crystal Palace)

Substitutes: 8 Justin Oboavwoduo (Manchester City) for Russell-Denny 89’, 15 Kadan Young (Royal Antwerp, loan from Aston Villa) for Amo-Ameyaw 45’, 18 Shumaira Mheuka (Chelsea) for King 77’, 17 Tom Watson (Sunderland) for Derry 77’, 14 Harrison Murray-Campbell (Chelsea) for Abbott 89’

Substitutes not used: 13 Finlay Herrick (GK) (West Ham United), 2 Triston Rowe (Aston Villa), 3 Joe Johnson (Luton Town)

Goals: King 35’, Wheatley 52’, Russell-Denny 55’, Abbott 61’, Derry 63’

Head Coach: Will Antwi