England Under-21s prepared for Bratislava heat in Euro semi-finals
Lee Carsley will not allow the heat to be an excuse as England Under-21s prepare to face the Netherlands in the European Championship semi-finals in Bratislava.
Carsley's side beat tournament favourites Spain in the quarter-finals to take a big step towards defending their title in Slovakia.
Standing in their way of a final against either France or Germany is a clash with the Dutch at Bratislava's Tehelne Pole stadium on Wednesday, when temperatures are set to exceed 30 degrees Celsius.
Building towards the #U21EURO semi-final!👊📈 pic.twitter.com/bMGyyyjwIa
— England (@England) June 24, 2025
'We've not shied away from the heat,' Carsley said.
'We've exposed the players to it fully. We're ready for it. We're fully prepared now.
'We've trained at some of the hottest periods of the day, not on purpose but just the way that it's worked out with our training time.
'We've been here long enough now to acclimatise to the heat. We've definitely got hydration strategies in place in terms of what the players need to cool down quickly and hydrate quickly.
'I think our use of the substitutions has been effective in terms of our timings. We've probably gone a little bit earlier than you would in normal circumstances, based on how hot it's been.'
After a nervy 2-2 Group D opener against Finland, the Netherlands have conceded just once in their last three games and reached the last four with a 1-0 win over Portugal.
And Carsley believes they will pose England a similar test to Spain in the last eight.
What a win. What a performance.
OUR #YOUNGLIONS ARE INTO THE #U21EURO SEMI-FINALS! 👏 pic.twitter.com/NhfXGuUvtS
— England (@England) June 21, 2025
'The Netherlands are a team that we've been watching now for a while,' the Young Lions' boss added.
'They're very attacking, very expansive in the way they play, technically very good.
'I really like the system that they play as well, very similar to the Spanish. We expect a really tough game and we're fully prepared for it.'
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