England steeled for new challenge

Fresh from playing in their first UEFA European Under-17 Championship final in May, England will make their FIFA U-17 World Cup debut in Korea Republic determined to prove themselves once again.

Tough group
Only a 1-0 defeat by Spain cost England the title in Belgium, but their run booked a ticket to the global finals. It is no easy task in Group B, as they open on Saturday against last year's AFC Asian Under-16 Championship runners-up North Korea, and then face New Zealand and the only three-time winners, South American champions Brazil. "We have got one of the toughest groups," England manager John Peacock told theFA.com.

'Great experience'
"Brazil will be tournament favourites and it will be a great experience for our players to play against them. North Korea are an unknown quantity. We have not played them at this level before. All we have to go on is DVDs of their matches, but we will not be taking them lightly. They came second in their confederation behind Japan so we know it will be a tough game. New Zealand are a team we don't come across too often. Again, we will not be underestimating them - they will want to beat England."

Squad bond
Other than the absence of playmaker Daniel Rose, who was ruled out at the weekend with a stress fracture in his leg, the squad will be a familiar one with 16 of the 18 players who reached the final in Belgium involved, including exciting playmaker Victor Moses, striker Rhys Murphy, midfielders Michael Woods and Henri Lansbury, goalkeeper Jason Steele and defender Jordan Spence. "This group has been together for quite a while," said Spence, the captain. "We all get on really well, everyone just slots in. We were together quite a long time at the Euros and that brought us closer together. Winning breeds happiness."