BEVERLY HILLS, March 23, (THEWILL) – Talented English youngster Mason Greenwood of English Premier League club Manchester United has been forced to withdraw from the national team squad for the Under-21 European Championship. This injury-based withdrawal means Todd Cantwell, of English Championship club Norwich FC, will take his place.
The Old Trafford teenager played the full match and was on the scoresheet as the only goalscorer in United’s 3-1 FA Cup quarter final defeat to Leicester City, owing to a Youri Tielemans goal sandwiched between a brace from Nigeria in-form forward Kelechi Iheanacho.
Unfortunately, he will not be able to replicate his fine form for his country after picking up an unspecified injury from that encounter. There is, as yet, no timeline on Greenwood’s return to fitness. If he can apply himself to recovery during the international break, he may not have to sit out any matches when the Premier League games resume.
In the interim, Aidy Boothroyd’s England side will bemoan Greenwood’s absence. The forward was pencilled down to feature prominently in their upcoming fixtures of the European Championship. Cantwell, who has had a remarkable season for Norwich in the second division of English football will relish his chance.
With five goals and four assists, the midfielder has helped the Canaries emerge as strong title favourites to win the Championship and return to the top flight again with eight matches left to play after 25 Matchday fixtures. He was also impressive while they played in the EPL last term with six goals.
Yet, Cantwell has only little international level experience with just three England Under-21 caps in his CV. What Greenwood’s absence provides for the young player now is the opportunity to gain experience and grow in consistency to become a first choice pick.
The Young Lions commence hostilities in the European Championship group stage campaign against Switzerland on Thursday, March 25 while tougher fixtures against Portugal and Croatia await. Qualification from the group stages will take them to the knockout stages of the competition billed to be played between May 31 and June 6, this year.
Coach Boothroyd can count on the likes of top-shelf quality like Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi and Arsenal starlet Emile Smith-Rowe, who confidently features prominently for the north London club after breaking into Mikel Arteta’s first team.
They will be hoping to improve on England’s dismal showing in the 2019 edition, which culminated in the country crashing out at the group stage in embarrassing fashion.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
