Why do England have so many players older than 21 at the European Under-21 Championship?

England are among the favourites for success at the European Under-21 Championships, which are underway.

Lee Carsley’s side are bidding to become the first Young Lions team to win the tournament since 1984.

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But perhaps that wouldn’t be so surprising with the depth of Premier League talent among the England ranks.

There are 11 players in England’s 23 man squad over the age of 21 already, with Emile Smith Rowe even making three senior appearances as well.

The Arsenal star will be one of five Young Lion stars to be 23-years-old by the time the 2023/24 season gets properly underway.

Max Aarons, Ben Johnson and Morgan Gibbs-White are all 23 already, with Smith Rowe and Angel Gomes to hit the milestone this summer.

What are the rules around over-age players?

England’s lack of under-21 players in their squad may raise eyebrows among the uninitiated but it is allowed under UEFA rules.

The competition is held every two years and the qualification process for this summer’s edition began in 2021.

UEFA rules dictate that players had to be 21-years-old or under at the start of that year to compete at the finals should their team qualify.

Players born on or after 1 January 2000 are eligible this summer – with Norwich City’s Aarons the eldest in the squad and passing the cut-off point by a matter of days.

The reason for this is that the organisation of the U21 tournament was designed help the development of international teams.

And UEFA decided that it would be unfair for players to feature in qualifying but be unable to take part in the Euros themselves because they’ve then gone past the 21-year-old threshold.

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England U21s vs Israel U21s: talkSPORT coverage

The Young Lions next Group C match takes place on Sunday, June 25.

Kick-off at the Ramaz Shengelias Sakhelobis Stadioni in Georgia is set for 5pm UK time.

talkSPORT will provide live commentary from Cameron Pope and former Peterborough striker Aaron McLean.

To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream.

You can also listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.