Noble knows seven rivals

Mark Noble and his England team-mates have learned who they will be up against at the 2009 European Under-21 Championship next summer.

After the 5-4 aggregate success against Wales in Tuesday night's play-off, the Young Lions made sure of a place in the eight-nation finals in Sweden. Along with the hosts, the other six countries involved after success in their respective two-legged ties are Italy - formerly coached by Gianfranco Zola - Spain, Germany, Serbia, Finland and Belarus.

The draw will take place on Wednesday 3 December in Gothenburg. The Netherlands - winners of the last two editions - have not won the right to defend their trophy. The finals will be held between 15 and 29 June, with the chance still for the club's Under-19 internationals James Tomkins, Jordan Spence, Junior Stanislas and Freddie Sears to stake their claim before the season end to make it into Stuart Pearce's 23-man squad.