Leeds United have a number of players on international duty, including teenage centre-back Charlie Cresswell.
And the defender has shined for England Under-21s, appearing in all 180 minutes of matches against Serbia and Ukraine.
He may have only been selected alongside Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite because Southampton’s Taylor Harwood-Bellis was injured, but the Whites man seized the opportunity with both hands.
Cresswell had nothing to do in the first meeting with Serbia, as Lee Carsley’s team thrashed their opponents 9-1.
But the second match against Ukraine was a different story, with Cresswell forced to defend heavily as their opponents won narrowly 3-2.
The Leeds teenager was not only focused in defending, as the 21-year-old scored his side’s second goal of the game.
He may have been forgiven for believing his 89th-minute shot would secure a draw for the Young Lions, but the hosts had other plans, with Illya Kvasnytsya scoring the game-winning goal in the 94th minute.
Cresswell can return to Elland Road with his tail between his legs, having given his club manager Daniel Farke enough to think about ahead of Saturday’s (21 October) showdown with Norwich City.
At the moment, the centre-back is far down the pecking order, but that could change after his impressive defeats on the international stage.
Farke will almost certainly continue to rely on the likes of Joe Rodon, Pascal Struijk, and Liam Cooper, but the manager can rest easy knowing that Cresswell is more than capable of stepping up if necessary.
In other Leeds United news, a transfer decision by 49ers Enterprises has been justified in light of recent player news at Elland Road.
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