It is not often that England win a World Cup, so there’s a good reason why the England under-17 class of 2017 stand out in the Three Lions’ recent history as a special bunch.
The way they claimed the trophy was pretty special too, coming from 2-0 down against Spain to win 5-2 in Kolkata, India. The man at the helm that day five years ago was Steve Cooper – the manager now charged with trying to keep Nottingham Forest in the Premier League.
Success in youth football is no guarantee of success down the line. The best footballers in academy football sometimes fade as they grow older, with injuries and personal circumstances preventing them from rising through the ranks.
Cooper’s successful squad has a pretty good hit rate, however. So five years to the day since that triumph in Kolkata, allow Mirror Football to take you through the ranks and see how their careers have progressed.
Goalkeeper: Curtis Anderson
Anderson was a Manchester City academy player back in 2017, but since then has been on quite the journey. He moved across the Atlantic to sign for US side Charlotte Independence in 2019 before coming back to England to sign for Wycombe Wanderers, where he was sent out on loan to Walton Casuals and Eastbourne Borough.
Having never made an appearance for Wycombe, the 22-year-old joined Northern Premier League side Lancaster City in January.
Full-back: Steven Sessegnon
The twin of Tottenham left-back Ryan Sessegnon went to India as a key member of Cooper’s squad. He was a Fulham player then – and he remains one now. Sessegnon is yet to make a real breakthrough at Fulham and is currently out on loan with Charlton Athletic, following spells at Bristol City and Plymouth Argyle.
Centre-back: Marc Guehi
Guehi is one of the few players on this list to have progressed to the senior England squad, having been capped by Gareth Southgate for the first time in March. The 22-year-old’s international recognition came off the back of some solid and consistent displays for Crystal Palace, who bought him in July 2021 for £18million from Chelsea.
Centre-back: Joel Latibeaudiere
Latibeaudiere was a prominent player at youth team level, captaining Manchester City's U18 to the Premier League North title and the FA Youth Cup final. But he was never given a first-team chance by Pep Guardiola and, after a loan spell with FC Twente, he moved to Swansea City in October 2020.
Now settled at the Championship club, Latibeaudiere is a regular for Russell Martin’s side, who are pushing for promotion back to the Premier League.
Full-back: Jonathan Panzo
For a 22-year-old, Panzo has already had quite the nomadic career. One of many talented players developed by the Chelsea academy, Panzo left for Monaco, has played on loan for Cercle Brugge and signed for Dijon.
He was snapped up by Nottingham Forest in January, before they were promoted to the Premier League, and has since been loaned out to Coventry City for the season. He features regularly on the left side of Mark Robins’ favoured three-man defence at the Sky Blues.
Centre-midfield: Tashan Oakley-Boothe
Oakley-Boothe was at Tottenham back in October 2017, but made just one substitute appearance in the League Cup for his boyhood club. He was sold to Stoke City in January 2020 where he made a decent impact before a back injury stalled his progress.
This season has taken the midfielder to Lincoln City on a season-long loan and he is a regular for the League One side.
Centre-midfield: George McEachran
The younger brother of Josh McEachran has been given his schooling at Chelsea, where he featured heavily for all age groups. McEachran is now following the well-trodden path of Chelsea youngsters, with a loan spell at Cambuur followed by another at Dutch side MVV, where he has one assist in three appearances so far.
Right-wing: Phil Foden
Here is a name you are bound to be familiar with. Foden was the star of the under-17 team, scoring twice in the final to win the man of the match award. It will come as no surprise to those who watched him dazzle defences in India that Foden is already an established world star.
At the age of 22, Foden already has 52 goals and 36 assists in 185 appearances for Man City. He has won four Premier League titles, four League Cups and an FA Cup and is rightly considered one of the best young players in the world.
Attacking midfield: Morgan Gibbs-White
There is a reason why Nottingham Forest were so keen to sign Gibbs-White this summer. Cooper managed him with England under-17s, so knew just how good he could be. Forest shelled out a whopping £42.5m to sign the midfielder from Wolves after he bagged 12 goals and 10 assists on loan at Sheffield United last season.
Gibbs-White is yet to provide much of a return on that investment, with two assists in 12 Premier League games this season.
Left-wing: Callum Hudson-Odoi
Hudson-Odoi is another player who enjoyed an early breakthrough in his career. The 22-year-old winger has already played 126 times for Chelsea, contributing 16 goals and 22 assists, and has a Champions League and Europa League winners medal in his collection.
However, he left Chelsea this summer, joining Bayer Leverkusen on a season-long loan in order to get more frequent game time. He netted his first goal for Leverkusen in their 2-2 draw against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
Striker: Rhian Brewster
Brewster won the Golden Boot at the Under-17 World Cup after banging hat-tricks against the USA and Brazil in the quarter-final and semi-final and netting against Spain in the final. Despite his brilliant record for England, it never happened for him at Liverpool, who sold him to Sheffield United in 2020 for £23.5m.
It’s been slow going in front of goal at the Blades, who have so far only got five goals and one assist in 62 appearances for their money.
Substitutes
Timothy Eyoma – Came through the Tottenham academy. Now a regular in defence for Lincoln City.
Lewis Gibson – Was in the Newcastle and Everton academies. Centre-back now at Bristol Rovers – a fourth loan spell of his young career.
Angel Gomes – The exciting ex- Manchester United youngster is a regular for Lille, who he joined in August 2020.
Nya Kirby – The midfielder is currently without a club, having been released by Crystal Palace in the summer.
Josef Bursik – Stoke City goalkeeper has been loaned out frequently. Now getting regular games for the Potters.
Danny Loader – Was with Reading in 2017, but joined Porto in 2020 and has now progressed into the Portuguese side’s first team.
Conor Gallagher – Now getting regular games for Chelsea under Graham Potter after a breakthrough season on loan with Crystal Palace.
Emile Smith Rowe – Arsenal star has been limited to just four appearances so far this season by injuries, but a Mikel Arteta favourite when fit.
Jadon Sancho – Was recalled from the tournament by Borussia Dortmund. Now at Manchester United after £73m transfer.
Billy Crellin – Third-choice goalkeeper was with Fleetwood in 2017. Signed by Everton in January to play for the club’s under-23 side.
