England Under-21s recovered from an early setback to earn a 7-1 victory over Guinea Under-23s in their second match of the 2016 Toulon Tournament.
The Young Lions made it two wins from two at the Stade de Lattre-de-Tassigny, despite falling behind to a Thierno Diallo strike just 48 seconds in.
Jack Grealish scored two on his full international debut, while Cauley Woodrow bagged a brace of his own and played a key part in another which went down as an own goal.
James Ward-Prowse was also on target in the first half from the penalty spot, but the goal of the evening came courtesy of Nathan Redmond who belted one home from all of 30 yards out.
Relive how the one-sided affair unfolded with our live text coverage below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Toulon Tournament group-stage clash between England Under-21s and Guinea Under-20s. This is a competition used to accustom younger players to the demands of tournament football, but it is one that the Young Lions have not had too much success in over recent years.
England's only four triumphs in this competition came during a five-year spell in the early 1990s, in fact, at a time when Alan Shearer and Mark Robins were picking up top-scorer accolades in this France-based event. The task of scoring goals has now been left to a new generation of talents, so with that in mind let us check out the team news for this Group B showdown before taking a look at the fixture in some more depth.
TEAM NEWS!
ENGLAND XI: Gunn, Stephens, Targett, Holding, Hause, Ward-Prowse, Swift, Grimes, Grealish, Redmond, Woodrow
GUINEA XI: Doucoure, Cisse, Sampou, Toure, Camara, Toure, Kaba, Diallo, Guirassy, Diallo, Guarassy
England have gone with a change of goalkeeper for this evening's clash, then, with Angus Gunn coming in to replace Jordan Pickford between the sticks. With such a high volume of games in such a short space of time, changes to the team are inevitable as this starting XI goes some way to highlighting. The man to lead the Young Lions out this evening is James Ward-Prowse - one of three Southampton men in the side.
It is a strong-looking side on the face of it, with the likes of Nathan Redmond, Jack Grealish and Cauley Woodrow the men tasked with providing attacking firepower. The inclusion of Grealish in particular for this tournament was interesting, after the youngster announced last year that he intended to switch allegiance from Republic of Ireland to England. He has one cap to his name at this level so far, and will now be given another chance to impress on the back of a poor personal campaign at club level.
Nineteen-year-old Chelsea midfielder Kasey Palmer was another to receive a first call-up to the squad for this tournament, but he is among the subs this evening alongside Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Calum Chambers, Duncan Watmore, Ben Chilwell, the aforementioned Pickford, and many others. It really is a strong looking squad, with rotation now likely to be key in what is a hectic week of football for the U-21s.
The England players arrived at the Stade de Lattre-de-Tassigny around an hour or so ago, as documented by the FA in this Twitter post...
🎥 The Under-21s have arrived in Aubagne ahead of tonight's game with Guinea in the @TournoiToulon. KO at 6.45pm. https://t.co/PbZXbDvJmr — England (@England) May 23, 2016
For those a little unfamiliar with this tournament, and the format of it, here is a little rundown. This is the 44th edition of the competition, running over 11 days up to its conclusion on May 29. Many teams use it as preparation for the Olympic Games, which obviously will not be the case for England due to the Great Britain team opting out of the football event for, shall we say, political reasons. Regardless of that, this is a first real taste of tournament football for many of these players on the road to what they all hope will be stardom somewhere down the line.
In terms of the format, 10 teams - from all five federations - have been split into two groups. England and Guinea are in Group B, which is currently being led by Paraguay. Only the top-placed side will advance through, taking their place in the final, while second place will compete in a third-fourth playoff. That is something the Young Lions will know all about, incidentally, as they have finished fourth in each of the last two years. Aidy Boothroyd was at the helm last year, and it was Gareth Southgate - manager this time around - who guided them to the playoffs in 2014.
England kicked their campaign off with a slender 1-0 win over Portugal, thanks to a goal from Lewis Baker on the hour mark four days ago. That was a well deserved victory in the end after the Young Lions created numerous openings, but Jordan Pickford did have a couple of key stops to make. Southgate's men are strong favourites heading into this game, which could set up a huge - and potentially pivotal - meeting with Paraguay on Wednesday evening.
DID YOU KNOW? Mark Robins, Alan Shearer and Emile Heskey each finished at the top of the goalscoring charts at the Toulon Tournament in the early 90s, helping England to two more successes across a stellar five-year spell that saw them lift four cups in total. Nigel Martyn and David James also impressed, taking the Golden Glove accolades, but the Young Lions have been stuck on those four triumphs now for the past two decades.
In terms of Guinea's tournament prospects, they have lost both of their matches so far - 3-1 vs. Paraguay on day one and 2-0 to Portugal a couple of days back. That means anything less than a win in their third game tonight and they will be out, making Wednesday's fixture against Japan essentially a dead-rubber as far as they are concerned. England will see this as a chance to score some goals, then, needing a win by a three-goal margin to usurp Paraguay at the top outright.
It is probably still too early to analyse Group B in too much detail, with England still having three games to play this week - the biggest of which will likely be Wednesday's meeting with Paraguay. Southgate will be desperate to end the recent hoodoo at this competition, spanning back 20 years, particularly after coming so close in the past two instalments when reaching the playoffs. This is a group certainly good enough to go all the way, but they will likely have to beat France if they are to lift the cup.
France are well positioned in Group A, sitting in second place with a game in hand after winning back of their opening two games. They also boast the competition's top scorer among their ranks at this stage - the talented Sehrou Guirassy, who has three goals in two games. Les Bleus, the tournament hosts of course, are the most successful side thanks to 12 title successes in the previous 43 instalments.
England's four successes and two runner-up finishes means that they are actually the third-most successful side to have ever competed in the Toulon Tournament, sitting behind just France and Brazil. Southgate will not want to settle for another fourth-place finish this year, however, with a victory here this evening key if they Young Lions are to push on and take top spot midway through their campaign. Kickoff at the Stade de Lattre-de-Tassigny is now just a matter of moments away.
KICKOFF! England are up-and-running in their second match of the Toulon Tournament, looking to make a positive start in order to chase down top spot in Group B.
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GOAL! ENGLAND 0-1 GUINEA (THIERNO DIALLO)
I said England will see this game as a chance to bag a few goals before that key meeting with Paraguay... well they are actually a goal down inside 48 seconds here! A good run down the right led to a cross coming in, which Thierno Diallo connected with to send past Gunn. Not the cleanest of connections but he just about put enough on the ball.
England just looking to settle into the game now following that unexpected setback inside the opening minute. Southgate named some experienced heads in his starting lineup, he claimed, to help get off to a solid start. No chance of that happening, but still plenty of time to respond.
SAVE! Big chance for Woodrow to make a quick response for England, but he saw his shot kept out by Doucoure. Guinea actually took the lead against Paraguay in their opening game, before shipping three goals in the remaining time, offering plenty of hope for the Young Lions.
GOAL! ENGLAND 1-1 GUINEA (JACK GREALISH)
England have been dominant since falling behind, and their pressure finally tells when Woodrow - who missed a big chance of his own - picked out Grealish to volley home on his debut. A well-taken strike from the youngster, which Doucoure probably should have done better to deal with down the middle.
OFF THE POST! Behind inside 48 seconds, but England really should be ahead with less than 10 minutes on the clock. Doucoure made a big stop to deny Woodrow a little earlier, and this time to woodwork prevents Redmond from adding a goal to his name. Non-stop action since the off here in this Group B clash.
Things just settling down a little, with no shots on target of any sort to report from the past couple of minutes! England look as though they could score five or six this evening if they take their chances a little better than they have done so far, but they have at least drawn level following that early setback.
A free kick into the box is not sufficiently dealt with, but Woodrow just cannot get a shot away 10 yards out. Guinea having to defend non-stop since going ahead - a long evening ahead for them at this rate. Just 40 minutes to be played per half, remember.
SHOT! Guarassy is looking a handful at the moment, weaving his way past a couple of men and getting a shot away which Gunn keeps out at his near post easily enough. Guinea enjoying a good spell in the match now - their best since the opening minute when edging themselves ahead.
Cisse's free kick into the box is handled well by England, who clear their lines well when asked to defend. For the opening 10 minutes or so the Young Lions mounted six or seven attacking moves, but it has been far quieter since then.
England remain third in Group B as things stand, incidentally, and this will be seen as two points dropped should it remain the same. Just a quarter of the match played, though, so plenty of time to find their attacking groove once more in the remainder.
Cisse has looked lively so far, moving forward up the pitch once more to fire away a shot that ends wide of the target. Guinea have been the better side over the past five minutes, with England struggling to find any real rhythm in an attacking sense.
Not sure Southgate was expecting his side to have to do so much defending in this first half, truth be told. Diallo uses his pace to get down the left but fails to get a cross in, but still the African nation are on top in this match. England need to get a grip on things.
More controlled play from England to keep possession and work the ball forward, but Targett cannot find Grealish with his pass down the flank as Toure just shields the ball out of play. Southgate will be remaining calm at this stage, although the longer it stays this way the more desperate the Young Lions will become.
Stephens sends in a cross from the right, which looked simple enough for Doucoure to deal with initially but he could not quite get a full hold on the ball. Had any white shirts been around it would have been a tap-in, but in the end the Guinea keep could take the second ball.
Woodrow cuts in on his right and looks to send a curled shot beyond Doucoure and into the far corner, but he put far too much on his strike and it ended a good yard or so wide of the intended target. Around 10 minutes to go in this first half.
Guinea work a good shooting position following an attack down the right, but it is sliced wide of the target in another let-off for England. Very evenly matched at the moment, with both sides coming close over the past 20 minutes but not quite doing enough.
GOAL! ENGLAND 2-1 GUINEA (JAMES WARD-PROWSE, PEN)
Just over half-hour played in this Toulon Tournament clash and England finally have the lead for the first time. It came via a penalty, which Grimes won when his ball was handled by the Guinea full-back. Ward-Prowse very nearly failed from the spot, as Doucoure went the right way but could not quite push the ball away to safety.
GOAL! ENGLAND 3-1 GUINEA (NATHAN REDMOND)
An absolute gem of a goal from Redmond - his eighth for England Under-21s - which has given the Young Lions complete control of this match. The Norwich City man just put his foot through the ball from 30 yards out and sent if flying past a helpless Doucoure between the Guinea sticks.
So with three minutes to go of this first half England have a two-goal advantage - not quite enough to start breathing just yet on the basis of what we have seen so far, but certainly enough to go into the break with a smile. The Young Lions still second behind Paraguay in Group B on the basis of goal difference.
England are now able to just knock the ball around without the worry of forcing the situation, which was not the case for the opening half-hour of this overall entertaining match. Half time now upon us, with 30 seconds of the opening 40 minutes remaining.
GOAL! ENGLAND 4-1 GUINEA (JACK GREALISH)
Well with the full 40 minutes up, Guinea cannot clear their lines and Grealish works just a yard of space inside the box to coolly tuck the ball home. A top finish from the Villa youngster to put his side well out of sight now with the last kick of the half.
HALF TIME: ENGLAND UNDER-21s 4-1 GUINEA UNDER-23s
The scoreline may suggest that this has been a walk in the park for England so far, but that has not been the case in truth. Guinea took the lead just 48 seconds in through Thierno Diallo, following some nice build-up play down the right which caught the Young Lions cold early on.
That was very much a shock to the system for England, who were always expected to win heavily this evening, but they soon responded in their second match of the Toulon Tournament. Woodrow had his one-on-one attempt kept out, although there was to be no denying Grealish on nine minutes when he volleyed home inside the box.
Redmond struck the bar soon after, but to show that it was not all one-sided Guarassy tested Gunn down low 15 minutes in. It was very much evenly matched up until around the half-hour mark, when England finally moved up a gear and edged ahead when Ward-Prowse scored from the spot. Grimes won the penalty thanks to a handball in the area, providing the catalyst for his side to push on when Redmond rifled home a third from range.
There was still time for Grealish to add his second and England's fourth on the stroke of half time, tucking home well inside the box when picked out to surely put the game out of Guinea's reach. The second half is due to get underway in just a few minutes' time.
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RESTART! We are back underway in this international clash, and there is news of one alteration to bring you from the break as Nathaniel Chalobah has come on for Ward-Prowse. Expect to see Southgate make a couple more changes around the hour mark.
OFF THE POST! First booking of the match arrives just a couple of minutes into the second half, but more importantly for England they almost had a fifth goal. Swift took the free kick from the right-sided position, clipping the post with his attempt.
Better from Guinea, as they work their way up the pitch down the right, only for the end product to be plucked comfortably out of the air by Gunn. Not an awful lot for the Man City youngster to do so far - just one save and one unfortunate goal that he was unable to keep out very early on.
Just a quick reminder - England are currently top in Group B as things stand, due to a superior goal difference compared to that of Paraguay, setting up what should be a real thriller between the two countries in a couple of days' time.
GOAL! ENGLAND 5-1 GUINEA (TOURE, OWN GOAL)
A real comical goal for Guinea to concede, as Woodrow's shot is deflected and helped into the net by an unfortunate Toure. A chance for Grealish to bag a hat-trick prior to that, but he was unable to really take his brief opening. Game over now.
ENGLAND SUBS! Hause and Redmond are off for Palmer and Chambers for the remaining half-hour of this one-sided affair. Chambers almost made an immediate impact, but could only send his header from a free kick into the hands of Doukoure.
England now clear at the top of Group B thanks to a real route here. Goal difference could very well play a crucial part when it comes to the totting up process due to the amount of games played, so on that front things are looking rosy for the Young Lions to say the least.
GOAL! ENGLAND 6-1 GUINEA (CAULEY WOODROW)
Not quite sure if Woodrow will be credited with that unfortunate goal conceded by Guinea a few minutes ago, but he will certainly have this one to his name. A nice slide-rule finish from the Fulham product puts England a little closer to double figures.
ENGLAND SUB! Duncan Watmore has now joined the party, perhaps looking to bag one or two of his own, replacing Grealish for the remaining 20 minutes of this one-sided match. The Young Lions looking for a seventh here, rather than sitting back.
Guinea just unable to hold back England at the moment, and we are likely to see a seventh and possibly eighth at this rate. The Young Lions in a real strong position at the top of Group B, sitting ahead of Paraguay now by virtue of a far superior goal difference in context.
That fifth goal is still being credited to Woodrow at the moment, which will likely change at full time, but as things stand he is now on a hat-trick in the South of France.
📸 @Prowsey16 is congratulated on his goal by @NathanRedmond22, who went on to score one himself. #toulon2016 pic.twitter.com/Be24rZVZDz — England (@England) May 23, 2016
No real sign of England adding a seventh to their tally, in truth, as the chances just appear to have died down a little. Really got to feel for Guinea, who have led in two of their three games before shipping a combined tally of 11 goals. They just could not build on their early opener and a fairly solid start.
Still plenty of pressing from England, and Matt Grimes in particular down the flank, but still no real sign of a breakthrough since adding their sixth of the match. More than one eye on that Paraguay match now, which comes just 48 hours after this contest.
GOAL! ENGLAND 7-1 GUINEA (CAULEY WOODROW)
England do indeed have a seventh, and it comes courtesy of a Woodrow tap-in - his second of the match. Substitute Watmore made the goal, though, as he was played through only to lay it on a plate for his teammate, who may still be credited with a hat-trick if the own goal goes his way.
So just eight minutes left to play now in the South of France, and still England go in search of an eighth. I mentioned it a little earlier - goal difference could well prove to be a vital factor at the top of Group B. Just one top can progress through to the final, remember.
Guinea spreading the ball wide in an attempt to bag a consolation goal late on, but it does not look likely to happen at the moment. Another frustrating evening for them, and an early exit with one game still left to play against Japan at the end of the week.
It is fair to say Southgate will be delighted by the way this game has panned out, with that early setback proving to be a blessing in disguise. The opening 30 minutes were all about digging deep, but since then it really has been all one way traffic.
Stephens gets forward from his right-back position, even at this late stage of the game, sending the ball right across the face of goal without a telling touch from a player in white. Just 90 seconds or so left to play in this contest, plus any additional minutes added on.
FULL TIME: ENGLAND UNDER-21s 7-1 GUINEA UNDER-23s
So there we have it - a comfortable margin of victory for England in the end, as they recovered from a goal down just 48 seconds in to beat Guinea 7-1 in the South of France. Jack Grealish bagged two on his full debut for the Under-21s, while Cauley Woodrow swept in a brace of his own and also played a key part in an unfortunate own goal for the African nation.
Well that concludes Sports Mole's live text coverage of events at the Stade de Lattre-de-Tassigny, but be sure to check out our on-the-whistle report which can be found by clicking here. Our next foray into the world of the Toulon Tournament comes on Wednesday evening, when England face Paraguay in a likely decider for a place in the final. See you then!
