England U19, managed by Will Antwi, are in Portugal for the Elite Round of the UEFA Euro U19 2026 qualifiers—the final hurdle before a potential place at the finals in North Wales, scheduled from 28 June to 11 July. After navigating the first round with authority, the Young Lions now face a far more demanding task, needing to top a highly competitive group featuring Portugal, Serbia and Poland. With no qualification spot awarded to the best runners-up, every fixture carries significant weight in the race to progress.
A squad packed with quality
For this important camp, Will Antwi has relied on a well-established core. Chris Rigg remains the heartbeat of the midfield, dictating tempo and driving the side forward, while Trey Nyoni brings technical quality and valuable experience gained at higher age-group level. In attack, Jesse Derry—currently in excellent form with Chelsea—stands out as one of England’s primary weapons, alongside Rio Ngumoha, whose performances for Liverpool, particularly his technical ability, continue to catch the eye.
At the back, Kian Noble and Airidas Golambeckis form a solid defensive pairing and are both named in the starting line-up for this opening fixture. There is also considerable attention on Max Dowman, who arrives in Portugal full of confidence after scoring his first professional goal for Arsenal.
England U19 Starting XI vs Serbia
- Oliver Whatmuff (Rochdale)
- Airidas Golambeckis (West Ham United)
- Ezra Mayers (West Ham United)
- Kian Noble (Manchester City)
- Souleymane Sidibe (PSV Eindhoven)
- Trey Nyoni (Liverpool)
- Harrison Armstrong (Everton)
- Divine Mukasa (Manchester City)
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
- Shumaira Mheuka (Chelsea)
- Jesse Derry (Chelsea)
