Young midfielder confesses Under-21 call-up came as something of a surprise to him.
Young midfielder confesses Under-21 call-up came as something of a surprise to him.
Rams midfielder Will Hughes admitted he was shocked when he first heard the news that he was named in Stuart Pearce’s England Under-21s’ squad.The 17-year-old was called up to the England U17s for the first time in February earlier this year and scored his maiden international goal in the Three Lions’ 2-2 draw with Netherlands.
Hughes has made 17 appearances for the Rams so far this season and despite an encouraging start to the campaign, the creative midfielder revealed he did not quite believe it when he was told he was named in the England Under-21s’ squad that faces Northern Ireland at Bloomfield Road tomorrow evening.
He told Rams Player:“Being called up to the England Under-21s’ squad is a fantastic achievement on my part, which I am really looking forward to.
“One of the members of the Derby County media team phoned me up on Thursday morning shortly after one of my A-Level lessons.
“I didn’t believe him to begin with and it was a bit of a shock considering my previous cap was for the Under-17s.
“It is a great achievement and it will be a fantastic experience to play with the older players.
“When you look at the names in the squad; the likes of Jordan Henderson, Thomas Ince, Josh McEachran – they are the sort of players I have been watching on television for the last two or three years.“So being named in a squad with players of that calibre is amazing and I am really looking forward to learning from them.”
The news of Hughes’ England Under-21 call-up came prior to Saturday’s narrow 2-1 defeat at Millwall – a game in which the young midfielder netted his second ever goal for the club in spectacular fashion, however the Academy graduate insists he has taken no joy from scoring.
He added: “The goal is no consolation considering we lost the game, but it was nice to get on the score-sheet.
“As I said, if we had got something out of the game I would have been a lot happier. But it is a team game, and I cannot be happy about the end result.”
Watch the full interview with Will Hughes exclusively on Rams Player.
