Live Blog: England U21s vs Romania U21s: The Cyrille Regis International Live From Molineux Stadium
7:20 PM: Unfortunately that wraps up our coverage live from Molineux Stadium this evening where Boothroyd’s England U21s and Isaila’s Romania U21s played out an entertaining affair that the home nation just edged in the end, Demarai Gray and Jake Clarke-Salter rendering a late Romanian consolation useless.
Tonight was the visitors’ first loss in just under a year, the Young Lions are now unbeaten since the start of their 2019 U21 European Championship qualifying campaign and face off with Ukraine not too far from here at Bramall Lane next in a qualifier on Tuesday night, while the Romanians are now not in action until September when they travel to Portugal.
Thank you very much for joining us and choosing our coverage of this exciting youth International and sincerely hope that you enjoyed the full four hours, do stay across all of our channels in the next few days for more exclusive reaction from this game and all of the fallout, of course, including from both managers, I’ve been your Host Reporter Luke Glanville live from the Cyrille Regis International here at Molineux Stadium, thank you very much, I hope that you can join me again soon, goodbye and goodnight.
7:10 PM: It was a tense finish in the end, but the Three Lions held onto victory here in the Cyrille Regis International thanks to goals from Gray and Clarke-Salter on a dramatic evening here at Molineux to maintain a run of consecutive victories that has lasted for over seven months now.
7:08 PM: Full-time: England U21s 2-1 Romania U21s.
90+4: It goes all the way through and out, the Three Lions clear.
90+3: What a block! Walker-Peters gets down to clear from close-range, Romania now have another free-kick, tense moments for the hosts.
90+2: Coman gets two efforts and now there’s a corner, dramatic scenes.
90+1: Kenny’s pull-back gives away a free-kick on the very edge, a real chance to break England hearts.
90: Four minutes will be added on at the end of this one, 2-1.
89: Romania are now throwing everything forward to try to get a draw, it’s not enough at the moment.
88: The Everton man goes close once more from the same position, he can’t believe he hasn’t scored.
88: Calvert-Lewin looks to lob Radu, inches over the bar.
87: The hosts attack and look dangerous, however, Alexander-Arnold gives it away.
86: Maddison is inches away from being a super sub as he hits the post, Romania make a double change to bolster their late attacks.
85: The following corner is cleared and Romania break to no avail.
84: Calvet-Lewin and Maddison replace Abraham and Dowell for the hosts.
83: Lookman is played in with a great chance to make it 3-1, Radu is brave in stopping him.
83: The atmosphere is certainly a lot tenser now, the home nation have seven minutes to hold on.
82: Dowell’s cross is deep and Radu catches.
81: The Young Lions look to restore their two-goal advantage and now have a free-kick from a similar position Romania scored at the other end, they couldn’t, could they?
79: The comeback is on for the visitors, as the free-kick is scrambled in.
79: GOAL! England U21s 2-1 Romania.
78: The Romanians have a chance to deliver from a free-kick here.
77: The second goal has killed this game off, in all honesty, few chances since.
76: Dowell almost flicks in Lookman, there is just a bit too much on it though.
75: Romania press after the goal, but can’t find a way back at the moment.
73: Clarke-Salter is the man to get it, rising high from the corner to head home powerfully, the Young Lions have surely wrapped this one up.
73: GOAL! England U21s 2-0 Romania U21s.
72: Close! Superb from Lookman, who cuts in and hits the near post via Radu’s fingertip, corner-ball.
71: Alexander-Arnold picks out Abraham to go for the spectacular but he fails to make contact with the ball.
70: Maitland-Niles hobbles off for England, Onomah comes on in his place.
69: Double change from the Romanians, Radu and Ivan make way for Olteanu and Petre.
68: Fantastic play from Dowell plays Alexander-Arnold in behind, he can neither score or find a teammate.
67: The ball sails all the way through for a goal-kick,
67: Maitland-Niles wins a free-kick, chance to deliver for the hosts.
66: The cross is cut out and cleared, England really haven’t made the most of their set-pieces.
65: Close! Alexander-Arnold picks out Abraham whose header loops onto the bar and out, the ball is scrambled away for a corner.
63: Little to report at present, the game is enduring a mini-lull in action.
62: Romania substitute Dobre is replaced by Costache.
61: Lookman gets to the byline and crosses, Radu claims well.
60: Kenny is out-muscled on the near side, Romania throw.
59: Kenny immediately plays Abraham in, he battles but can’t win anything.
58: England make their first substitution with scorer and captain Gray being replaced by Kenny, a defensive change.
57: A goalmouth scramble culminates in a second corner, it is put wide at the near post.
57: Wonderful defending from Walker-Peters denies a certain goal, Romania corner.
56: Hagu hits one from range, it is very high and very wide indeed.
55: Alexander-Arnold defends well to nod a long-ball out of danger.
54: Strong penalty appeal! Abraham gets in and goes down challenging for the ball, the referee waves away claims.
53: Gray is found on the far side, his touch, just a little too heavy and the move fizzles out.
52: Alexander-Arnold bursts away but his cross is poor and cleared with ease.
51: The strike from it is easily blocked, a shot was never on there.
50: Ivan has his heels clipped and wins his nation a free-kick in a dangerous area here.
49: Radu is fine to continue and comes back on, the match re-commences.
48: The visitors have a man down just below me, I can hear his screams of pain, that looks like a nasty one.
47: The Three Lions have intently started the second 45, Romania made a single change at the break with Ciobanu coming on.
46: Abraham looks lively on the left but is swiftly blocked off.
6:18 PM: Hagi kicks-off and here we go for the second-half!
6:16 PM: The Young Lions go in at the break in the lead thanks to Gray’s early goal, but this game is far from over with Romania putting in a spirited display so far, we are about to bring you live text commentary of the second-half of this contest.
6:03 PM: Half-time: England U21s 1-0 Romania U21s.
45+2: The Young Lions are flagged offside, having worked the ball into a promising area.
45+1: Alexander-Arnold delivers from the right, it’s low and easily stopped.
45: Two minutes have been added on at the end of this half.
45: Romania break, looking for a late equaliser, the Three Lions defend well to deny them once more.
44: Abraham wins his team a right-sided throw, it’s wasted.
43: Lookman brings it forward for England, though he is soon forced back.
42: Clarke-Salter cleans up at the back, Romania look the likeliest to score at the moment.
41: Rochdale man Dobre tries his luck, his effort appears to be deflected wide but no corner is given, what do I know anyway?
40: The hosts have a goal-kick as the ball runs out on the right.
39: Romania’s deep delivery from the right is caught by Henderson, Gray’s burst is impeded on the left.
38: Abraham looks to have been played through, the far side flag is up, however.
38: Another good delivery is dealt with well, England come again.
37: The cross is better this time, still cleared though, the home side have another corner.
36: Lookman feeds Dowell, he should score but sees his shot blocked for a corner.
35: The Three Lions are very intent on playing out from the back, the visitors win the ball in a dangerous area, work one in and Henderson must save the shot.
34: Romania rid the danger from an England throw on the far side, strong defending.
33: Sensational from Gray as he brings the ball down in his stride on the left, Radu just gets there before him and holds on, however.
32: The Romanians just run out of space in the box, they are a threat going forward.
31: The Young Lions still lead through Gray just after the half-hour mark here at Molineux, 1-0.
30: We are finally now back underway, this one has been a little stop-start.
29: We have a stoppage here as another Romania star is down in the centre, he eventually hobbles off.
27: Boothroyd’s men are getting a little sloppy here, at both ends, Dowell runs through but can’t convert from point-blank.
26: Butean is played in on the right, an England block stops his cross, the away nation look a real threat at the moment.
25: Abraham misses at the other end now, a huge, huge opportunity, this one has come to life.
24: Wow! How are Romania not level? It’s a huge miss when clean through, off the post.
24: England break quickly after winning the ball, Dowell can’t quite pick out Abraham, but there’s a corner nevertheless.
22: The affair has died down a little after an electric start, nothing to report presently.
21: The temperature has really dropped here in Wolverhampton, it’s like winter all over again.
20: Gray’s pace gets him fouled on halfway, possession is quickly given away by Boothroyd’s men.
19: It’s nodded away with ease, the home starlets really haven’t crossed well today.
18: Corner was the signal by the way, we are still waiting for it to be taken.
17: Abraham gets played in and Radu manages to deny him, the shot-stopper and a defender have been left on the deck.
16: Gray comes close again, seeing his volley blocked, the ball is now out, goal-kick.
15: The hosts are in on the left once more, the visitors have defended well and stop them once more.
14: Alexander-Arnold looks to go long, an easy take for Radu.
13: Henderson makes a smart catch at one end, while Abraham is slipped in at the other, unable to convert from a tight angle.
12: In the fallout of the chance, the home defence holds out well to stop further.
11: Meanwhile, the Romanians are in on the left, with the goal gaping, the forward fires well over the crossbar.
9: The Young Lions attack again after this, falling short of doubling their lead.
8: Captain Gray skips inside and sees his effort fly on off the defender.
8: GOAL! England U21s 1-0 Romania U21s.
7: The game’s first corner from England is poor, easily cleared.
6: A great turnout from supporters here today, not too many empty seats of the areas in use and a super atmosphere.
5: Debutant Ejaria breaks into the box and goes down, no penalty, while Maitland-Niles tests the goalkeeper, 0-0.
4: At the other end, the visitors get a cross in from the right, but nothing comes of it.
4: Abraham looks to have gotten in behind, but the flag was up on the far side.
2: Dowell tries his luck and the ball flies just wide.
2: The hosts get forward and earn a free-kick, chance here.
1: The Three Lions have started the better here.
5:15 PM: The home nation get the game underway and we are off!
5:15 PM: A fitting tribute to the legend Regis has been observed and we are ready to go here at Molineux, I must say sorry for the lack of visuals at present, we are struggling with a few technical difficulties at the moment, we will get those uploaded ASAP.
5:07 PM: The two sets of players have walked out to a loud cheer here in the West Midlands and it’s almost time for our live text commentary of this Cyrille Regis International between England U21s and Romania U21s.
5:00 PM: As the teams prepare to enter the field of play, it’s worth noting once again that we will be remembering the late great Cyrille Regis with the laying of wreaths and a minute’s applause prior to kick-off.
4:55 PM: The young stars of England and Romania have now headed in for their final match preparations as the atmosphere builds here inside Molineux, horns and singing aplenty.
4:50 PM: The England attackers are doing some shooting practice in the goal to my right here, they look sharp, a front three of Demarai Gray, Tammy Abraham and Ademola Lookman start for the home nation, while Mihai Dobre of Rochdale will be one to watch for the away side, stay with us here.
4:45 PM: Both sets of players are now out to warm-up, including the Young Lions who are pictured below just below my position here in the Press Box.
4:40 PM: The picturesque Molineux scene is set here with little over a half-hour until kick-off, the atmosphere is building.
4:30 PM: Here is this evening’s full teamsheet, including how Isaila’s Romania are lining up.
4:20 PM: That’s how Boothroyd’s boys line up this evening, Demarai Gray captains the side for the first time, while Dean Henderson starts between the sticks with Freddie Woodman and Angus Gunn nursing injuries, most notably, full teamsheet to follow……….
4:15 PM: England U21s starting Xl to face Romania U21s: Henderson (GK), Alexander-Arnold, Walker-Peters, Ejaria, Tomori, Clarke-Salter, Dowell, Maitland-Niles, Lookman, Abraham, Gray (C).
4:10 PM: A delicious beef lasagne for dinner here at Molineux Stadium, team news and kick-off is ever-closer in this Cyrille Regis International.
3:50 PM: We are now into the final 30 minutes before team news, which you will hear first right here with us, stay with us for now, strong lineups are expected from both managers for this friendly, the nations will be keen to get their years off on the right foot, today is the first meeting between the two since 2013, when the Three Lions triumphed 3-0, can they repeat this today here in the Midlands
3:45 PM: Young Lion and Leicester City star spoke to the FA’s official website ahead of the match yesterday, here is what he had to say about playing at Molineux and honouring ex-England star Regis, who sadly passed away at 59 years of age in January, he will be remembered with wreath laying and a minute’s applause tonight.
Playing At Molineux And The Test Of Romania:
“When I found out the fixture was at Molineux, I was excited as I’ve never played there and a lot of my family and friends are around there as well.
“Everyone’s close, so I’m looking forward to playing there for the first time, especially for England.
“They’ve [Wolves] been doing well and hopefully that might attract more fans and people will come to support us.
“We usually have a good turnout for games and it’s been a while since our last game so hopefully that will attract more fans here and it’s one to look forward to.
“Whether it’s a qualifier or warm-up game, we approach them in the same way and we’ll have the same attitude.
“It’s a televised game and it’s a chance for us to show what we can do and express ourselves and show what we’re about.”
Cyrille Regis:
“I knew about Cyrille and I’ve seen him around a few times in Birmingham over the years and the news was bad.
“It wasn’t nice news and it was clear that everyone respected what type of man he was. It was such a shock, to wake up and hear that news it took a while to sink in.
“He was such a nice guy and what he’s done in the game and the impact he’s had, was such a big thing.
“One of my best friends in football, Cyrille was his agent so I’ve met him a few times and had a few conversations with him. He’d always give me genuine advice and that’s something which I’ll always remember.
“It’s such a shame, but he had a great send off and the send off he deserved.
“The impact he had at his clubs, the fans still show their appreciation and he broke up the divide in so many ways and that shows the impact he had on the game.
“Being a black player myself, I understand what he did and how it’s still impacting us today. He’s done a lot and everyone in the game is respectful and understands what he did. It’s important to remember history like that.
“It’ll be great to pay our respects to him on Saturday.”
3:35 PM: While the clock ticks down towards team news here in the West Midlands, why not get yourself up to speed by reading my Match Preview of the Cyrille Regis International this evening. Find it here.
3:30 PM: Young Lions star Dominic Calvert-Lewin is the cover star of the Match Programme today, will he be a key man up front for the hosts this evening?
3:25 PM: Here is what today’s press match ticket looks like, under an hour now until we find out how managers Boothroyd and Isaila have set up their two starting Xls this evening.
3:20 PM: A bit of a sightseeing tour for me today as it is my first trip to Molineux as a reporter, the Sir Billy Wright statue that stands outside the Billy Wright stand where I’m currently setting in the Press Room and will be reporting from in the Press Box a little later today.
3:15 PM: Good afternoon from a mild Molineux Stadium where we have arrived to bring you live and exclusive build-up, text commentary and reaction from this evening’s Cyrille Regis International friendly between Aidy Boothroyd’s England U21s and Daniel Isaila’s Romania U21s.
Thank you very much for choosing our coverage on this Saturday afternoon and we certainly do have an exciting afternoon/evening of youth International football ahead of us, kick-off today is in exactly two hours from now at 5:15 PM and we should be bringing you team news an hour before that and plenty more before that, I’m your Host Reporter and you can follow the site at @ByFarBlog.