Jordan Spence has a mouth-watering Under-19 international friendly to look forward to on Tuesday night when England take on Germany in Colchester.
The 18-year-old defender has particular reason for wanting to do well, having been the skipper of the Young Lions side that lost out to Germany in the quarter-finals of the 2007 U-17 World Cup. Spence had helped his country to the last eight by scoring the winner against Brazil - and he remains the only Englishman at any level to have led a team to a competitive victory against the South American nation.
It promises to be a a stiff test against the reigning U19 continental champions but England are on a high after reaching next spring's Elite round final qualifying stage for the 2009 finals. Spence has previously worn the armband for the U16, U17 and U18s.