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Lee Carsley says he wants more from his England Under-21 side Lee Carsley says his England side were "shell-shocked" during their during their 2-1 European Under-21 Championship defeat by Germany - and "need to address" how they started the game. The defending champions found themselves 2-0 down inside the opening 33 minutes of their final group match, with Alex Scott replying during a more encouraging second-half display. England will now face Spain in the quarter-finals as Slovenia's 2-0 defeat by the Czech Republic meant the Germany result was not more costly for the Young Lions. "I thought there was definitely a bit of shell-shock, going 2-0 down so soon, " said Carsley. "We didn't start well either in the last game [0-0] against Slovenia. That's something we need to address. " Carsley, who made four changes to his starting XI, made a triple substitution at half-time, bringing on Genoa right-back Brooke Norton-Cuffy, captain James Mc Atee and striker Jay Stansfield as he looked to address his side's disappointing opening. "The first half was nowhere near good enough. The way we started the game, the goals that we conceded were really disappointing, " he added. "It was important they knew that. The changes we made at half-time, [we] could have made any number of changes. I asked for a reaction in the second half and we definitely saw a reaction. "The performance was not at the level we need. When you think of the reaction in the second half that was more like it. It took us to go 2-0 down to get to that point which is disappointing. " Carsley has not had as much time as he usually would to prepare his squad for the tournament following his stint as interim head coach of the senior team. He returned to take charge of the under-21s in March and has had to deal with the loss of Liam Delap and Jobe Bellingham after the pair signed for Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund respectively and will feature at the Fifa Club World Cup. "You know, with the attention that the team get, living up to some expectations, the responsibility of when you put the shirt on, no-one's going to roll over for us, " said Carsley. "We've spoken about that. But the response was very good and I expect us to start like that in the next game, because if we give Spain a two-goal start, it's game over. " Comments can not be loaded To load Comments you need to enable Java Script in your browser Los Angeles Lakers to sell majority ownership in historic deal Alexander-Arnold's debut analysed - and when did he really learn Spanish? 'New season, fresh me' - Foden shines after 'rough' ride How safe are funfair rides? How a 1930s Hollywood star became the 'mother of Wi-Fi' Claire Foy’s family tree reveals a Victorian accusation of murder The team are back to look at this week’s news Gambling and social media abuse of women in sport - what is going on? Nair's long road back as India head to Headingley Premier League fixtures - find out your club's schedule England U19s fight back from 5-1 down to draw with Germany - highlights. Video England U19s fight back from 5-1 down to draw with Germany - highlights What can we expect in the WSL transfer window? 5 Live Sport: All About. .. Audio5 Live Sport: All About. .. 'Hope you get cancer' - Boulter shares her online abuse with BBC 'Horrifying' - BBC Sport's Croft on online abuse in tennis. Video'Horrifying' - BBC Sport's Croft on online abuse in tennis 'The tumult in the Ingebrigtsen fairytale was never far from the surface' Le Mans win proves injury doubters wrong - Kubica F1 Q&A: Should Mc Laren have allowed Norris to pass team-mate Piastri? Man City start new era - but how might Guardiola's side look? In Pictures: Sporting photos of the week 'Woakes return more important than ever to England' Chelsea play in front of 50, 000 empty seats - apathy or bad scheduling? 'What's eating Rory? ' - will US Open prove reset point for Mc Ilroy? Summer transfer window reopens - who could be on the move? How does new captain Gill compare to India batting greats? Duplantis breaks men's pole vault world record for 12th time. Video Duplantis breaks men's pole vault world record for 12th time Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.