Will any of England's U21 European Championship heroes feature at Euro 2024?

Some of England’s U21 champions have already earned caps under Gareth Southgate

Gareth Southgate names his provisional Euro 2024 England squad on 21 May and the latest odds suggest a few U21 stars will make the cut.

The Young Lions won the 2023 European Championships in Romania and Georgia last summer. They beat Spain 1-0 in the final thanks to a Curtis Jones strike.

Fast-forward a year and some of those heroes are now eyeing a role in Southgate’s England Euro squad. This could be the last Gareth Southgate England squad before he steps down as manager.

Who will do enough to catch Southgate’s eye? We assess the odds of six U21 heroes who might grab a seat on the plane to Germany.

England Football Squad: Possible U21 Picks

England were sublime at the U21 Euros last summer. They went through the entire tournament without conceding, overcame the likes of Germany and Portugal, and deservedly beat Spain in the final.

That England U21 squad will go down in history but most have already moved on. Some have earned England call-ups, while others are now too old for the youth set-up.

Southgate will pick a 26-man preliminary squad in May and will need to boil that down to 23 come June. Here are six picks who could make the manager’s squad this summer…

Cole Palmer

Let’s start with an obvious one. Cole Palmer is so sure to get a place in Southgate’s squad that we’re not even offering odds on it. The Chelsea forward has two full caps already and is scoring for fun at Chelsea right now.

Palmer was an unused sub in the March friendly against Belgium and has a lot of competition for places here. However, he remains a solid choice for a peripheral place among Southgate’s forward arsenal.

Jarrad Branthwaite

A regular in the Everton XI, Jarrad Branthwaite is yet to make his England debut despite a recent call-up to the squad. He didn’t feature in the U21 final last summer, as Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Levi Colwill anchored the defence.

Branthwaite has had a breakout season on Merseyside, though, and is priced at 1.67 in the BetUK sportsbook to catch Southgate’s eye. He'll need to beat the likes of Lewis Dunk and Ezri Konsa to one of the few back-up positions in the heart of defence.

Levi Colwill

Colwill, like Branthwaite, is eyeing a squad place at the Euros this summer and made his debut in a friendly against Australia last October. He’s a regular in the Chelsea XI and looks comfortable in a three-man defence.

Colwill was integral to the U21s winning the Euros last summer but has fallen behind Branthwaite in the betting. That’s partially because Branthwaite has had more playing time at club level this season.

It’s unlikely both Branthwaite and Colwill will earn nods this summer, but one of them should. Colwill is the outsider at 2.25.

Anthony Gordon

Anthony Gordon cost Newcastle £40 million when joining from Everton last summer and is yet to fully justify the price tag. However, he has emerged as a viable super sub option for Southgate’s England team after impressing off the bench against Belgium in March.

Gordon has two caps to his name and will need to shine in a Magpies shirt for the remainder of the Premier League season to dislodge more seasoned England names in his position. The likes of Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham are already guaranteed a ticket to Germany.

Gordon needs to beat fellow playmakers such as Jarrod Bowen, Conor Gallagher and Cole Palmer to earn a spot here. We've priced him at 2.75 for now but those betting odds could change if the 23-year-old has a dazzling spring.

Curtis Jones

Curtis Jones scored the winning goal in the U21 Euro final and earned a place in the Team of the Tournament. He was a regular for Liverpool this season up until an ankle injury suffered in February ruled him out for a crunch point in the season.

Jones should be fully fit by the time Southgate names his squad. However, he may have some catching up to do if he is to beat the likes of Gallagher, James Maddison and perhaps even Jordan Henderson in the midfield. He could be Southgate's back-up option to Declan Rice and earn a nod over Kalvin Phillips.

At 5.00 he’s an outside shout to make the squad.

Harvey Elliott

Harvey Elliott earned 20 caps for England U21 and played his part in the European Championship success last summer. However, we're not sure he has the form required to push into this England squad.

Elliott is behind the likes of Palmer and Gordon when it comes to the Southgate pecking order. He's yet to get a call-up to the first team and was overlooked as recently as March.

There doesn't seem enough room for Elliott here and time is running out. Despite his form at Anfield, it looks as though Southgate will pick already-tested youth players rather than a totally fresh face. Don't be surprised, though, if Elliott makes the first England squad for September's Nations League matches against Republic of Ireland and Slovenia.

Who Is In The England Squad?

Southgate will name his 26-man initial England squad on 21 May. He will then oversee England’s training camp, with the plan to reduce the squad to 23 players come 7 June.

There is a possibility that UEFA will permit 26-man squad sizes this summer but it’s unlikely, as the extra places were only made available during tournaments affected by Covid-19.

There are some guarantees, though, on who will be in the squad. As we see it, the following 16 players will definitely be heading to Germany:

• Jordan Pickford
• Kyle Walker
• Aaron Ramsdale
• Ben Chilwell
• Kieran Trippier
• Luke Shaw
• John Stones
• Harry Maguire
• Declan Rice
• Jude Bellingham
• Phil Foden
• Marcus Rashford
• Harry Kane
• Bukayo Saka
• Jack Grealish
• Ollie Watkins

That leaves 10 spots available for the wider squad announced in May. The likes of Henderson, Joe Gomez, Marc Guéhi, Tyrone Mings, Kalvin Phillips and Callum Wilson are not guaranteed a spot.

It’s likely that at least one or two U21 heroes from last summer will make the cut. Be sure to check back at the latest BetUK odds to see who are the current frontrunners.