England let lead slip

England 1-1 Belgium
England's chances of reaching the final of the UEFA European Under-19 Championship are slim after a 1-1 draw against Belgium in their Group B match in Kongsvinger tonight.

Late equalisers
After conceding two late goals to finish with a 3-3 draw against Germany on Monday, England led again against the Belgians, only to concede an equaliser with eight minutes remaining which also gave their opponents fresh hope of progression. England are now third in the group on two points, one behind Ireland and two behind Germany. A victory against Ireland in their last game may not be enough to reach the final, and a defeat could even see them finish bottom of the group if Belgium, currently last on one point, get a result against Germany.

Dizzying permutations
The permutations are as dizzying as this evening's match was dramatic. England made three changes to the side that drew on Monday, bringing in Carlton Cole, who came on and scored against Germany, as well as Michael Chopra and Ben Bowditch in place of Dean Ashton, Jerome Thomas and John Welsh. Belgium made just the one change, replacing Stijn Janssens with Xavier Asselborn.

Chopra chance
The first half was devoid of goals but not incident. Bowditch picked up the only booking of the game after just eight minutes and both teams battled hard for possession, with much of the action took part in the middle of the pitch. The best chance of the half came after a corner, when Chopra found himself alone a metre out from the goal but managed to put his header over the bar.

Ashton arrival
Belgium's Jonathan Blondel, their goalscorer against the Republic of Ireland, went off injured early in the second half, to be replaced by Gregory Scattone. England took control of the game but, with the score still goalless, they too elected to change things around, withdrawing Cole for Ashton. Within seven minutes Ashton had broken the deadlock. Despite having his initial shot brilliantly saved by Bram Verbist in the Belgian goal, the Crewe Alexandra FC forward blasted in the rebound to notch his second goal of the tournament.

Janssens impact
However, England could not hold on to their lead. With eight minutes remaining, Janssens, who had been on the pitch barely 60 seconds, latched on to a long ball and beat Lee Grant. England pushed forward relentlessly and hit the crossbar twice in the dying minutes but could not find a winner.

Hunter disappointed
"Now we need to do well in the next game," said England coach Martin Hunter after the game. "We played good attacking football today and created a lot of chances, but I am disappointed with the result and that we lost our lead again. But the players are here to learn and gain experience, this tournament is a part of their international education."

Van Geersom pleased
Meanwhile, Belgium coach Marc van Geersom was pleased with his side's comeback. "When Blondel was injured early in the game we lost some creative force," he said. "He is our playmaker and most influential player, so that made the match difficult. England were a strong team and we feared their wingers. Now the game with Germany will mean everything to us and we could win."