U21 Euros semifinal: Elliott brace helps England beat Netherlands, sets up final vs Germany

Harvey Elliott scored twice as reigning champion England defeated the Netherlands 2-1 on Wednesday to set up a final against Germany at the Under-21 European Championship.

Lee Carsley’s youngsters are bidding for a second straight title but must get past Germany, which beat France 3-0 in the second semifinal in Slovakia.

Liverpool midfielder Elliott hammered home the opening goal for England shortly after the hour mark, making up for two earlier missed chances.

But Dutch substitute Noah Ohio, who played for England at Under-16 level, equalised for the Netherlands in the 72nd minute with a speculative effort from long range.

Elliott, who was part of the England squad which won the tournament in 2023, had the final say with four minutes remaining, cutting inside and slotting a clinical finish into the bottom corner.

Nelson Weiper volleyed Germany ahead in the eighth minute against France and Stuttgart forward Nick Woltemade turned in a rebound to double the lead on the quarter hour.

Germany missed a hatful of chances to put the game to bed in the second half before Brighton’s Brajan Gruda added a third in stoppage time.