Stuart Pearce: 'Raheem Sterling should play for England Under-21s'

By Steven Toplis, Reporter | 06 October 2014

Former England U21 boss Stuart Pearce claims that current manager Gareth Southgate should get his pick of young talent ahead of the Euro 2015 playoff against Croatia.

Stuart Pearce has claimed that England Under-21 manager Gareth Southgate should get his pick of young talent ahead of his side's Euro 2015 playoff.

Southgate's men face back-to-back clashes against Croatia as they look to book their spot in the finals in the Czech Republic next summer.

Former Under-21 boss Pearce believes that, with the senior side playing San Marino and Estonia in their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, players such as Raheem Sterling should be representing the younger team.

Pearce told talkSPORT: "What should happen is that the senior manager should say to the Under-21 boss, 'you pick anyone age appropriate that you need and, after that, I'll take whatever I've got'.

"The senior manager will be thinking, 'I'm going to win these two games [against San Marino and Estonia] and I've won away in Switzerland'.

"That includes Sterling. It's for the greater good of England. As I've said before, unless we start winning things at youth level, it won't replicate itself at senior level. We're trying to fix the roof before the foundations."

The first leg of the England Under-21's playoff tie takes place at Molineux on October 10.