Report: Andorra 1-1 England MU21s

Rico Lewis’s 90th-minute penalty earned England men’s under-21s a point with a 1-1 draw away at Andorra, to stay top of Group D and remain unbeaten during their UEFA EURO 2027 qualification campaign.

Gerard Sola Garcia’s second-half strike looked to have earned Andorra a famous victory, before Lewis converted from the spot late on.

The opening exchanges of the match produced little in terms of clear-cut chances, but England dominated the ball as they looked to plot their way through the Andorran defence.

It was the hosts who created the first opportunity of the match too, as Sola’s shot from just outside the area flashed past James Beadle’s post in the 14th minute.

Lewis’ quick feet forced the first corner of the game just shy of the half-hour mark, but Josh Acheampong could only head Ethan Nwaneri’s looping cross wide at the back post.

Andorra responded with pressure of their own, managing to find their way into England’s penalty area on multiple occasions to serve a warning of their threat.

England then broke through Josh King, but the Fulham man’s wicked cross fell tantalisingly out of the reach of dangerman and this term's top goalscorer Divin Mubama.

Those in white continued to press, with Myles Lewis-Skelly firing his effort over the bar in his first game with the MU21s, as the two sides went into the break all square.

Andorra made the breakthrough shortly after the restart, as Sola Garcia finished from close range after Yedid Santaella Prinetti’s cross into the box, and an upset appeared on the cards.

The Young Lions pressed hard for an equaliser but with the Andorran defence protecting their goal well, the closest they came was when Jobe Bellingham cut inside and curled a shot which was held by Marc de Castro Prat after 68 minutes.

Substitute Tyler Dibling was next to test Prat with a fierce drive from the edge of the box, but the goalkeeper was equal to it again.

The breakthrough then came in the final minute of additional time, as Lewis stepped up to slot home from the spot after Bellingham was fouled in the area.

And there was almost time for a winner, as Dibling's cushioned volley in added time was plucked out of the air by Prat to seal his team a memorable point.

England: 1 James Beadle (Birmingham City), 8 Rico Lewis (Manchester City), 4 Josh Acheampong (Chelsea), 6 Max Alleyne (Manchester City), 3 Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), 18 Joshua King (Fulham), 23 Sydie Peck (Sheffield United), 7 Jobe Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), 10 Ethan Nwaneri (Marseille), 11 Tyrique George (Everton), 9 Divin Mubama (Stoke City, loan from Manchester City)

Substitutes: 17 Samuel Amo-Ameyaw (Strasbourg) for Nwaneri 54’, 21 Romain Esse (Coventry City, loan from Crystal Palace) for Mubama 71, 20 Tyler Dibling (Everton) for Peck 71,

Substitutes not used: 13 Tommy Simkin (Stoke City), 16 Thierry Small (Preston North End), 5 Ashley Phillips (Stoke City, loan from Tottenham Hotspur), 19 Kellen Fisher (Norwich City), 15 Ben Nelson (Leicester City), 14 Archie Gray (Tottenham Hotspur),

Goal: Rico Lewis 90’

Head coach: Lee Carsley

Andorra: 13 Marc de Castro Prat, 23 Yedid Santaella Prinetti, 15 Guillem Acosta Farre, 5 Alex Cornella Molins, 11 Nil Linares Boutarfas, 4 Ian Olivera, 21 Marc Rodriguez, 10 Ot Remolins, 7 Jan Guma Cerqueda, 9 Gerard Sola Garcia (c) 8 Hugo Ferreira

Substitutes: 6 Daniel de Sa Vieira for Cornella Molins 70’, 19 Ivan Dominguez for Guma Cerqueda 71’, 22 Nelson Mendes Meireles for Linares Boutarfas 84’, 18 Albert Bisbal for Santaella Prinetti 85’, 20 Pere Simonet Alorda for Ferreira 85’,

Substitutes not used: 1 Adria Cornella, 3 Guillem Carrau Rodriguez, 16 Marcel Carrau, 17 Alex Rente Ferreira

Goal: Gerard Sola Garcia 52’

Head coach: Eloy Casals