Eddie Nketiah officially became the all-time leading goalscorer in England U21 history as he helped the Young Lions qualify for the European Under-21 Championship next summer.
The Arsenal striker surpassed Alan Shearer and Francis Jeffers’ record of 13 goals when he scored in the 88th minute of a 2-1 win against Turkey on Tuesday evening.
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The 21-year-old had the chance to break the record three minutes earlier, but missed from the penalty spot.
Nketiah has netted 14 goals in just 12 appearances for the Young Lions and England Under-21 boss Aidy Boothroyd has backed him to emulate Alan Shearer and Harry Kane.
Speaking before the Turkey win, Boothroyd said: “You look at the career that Alan had and Harry Kane, who is our England captain now.
“If Eddie can get to that point where like those two players, he’s in on goal, and you know he’s going to score consistently, that’s when you make that step from young to senior player. He is nearly there, not far off.
Getty Images - Getty
Getty Images - Getty
“But he is in the company of those players I have mentioned which shows you how much I think about him and how much we think about him in the system.
“He’s destined for big things. His personality and his persona around the lads, he has an aura of responsibility and leadership about him.”
Shearer is the Premier League’s all-time top scorer with 260 goals, while Kane regularly finds the net for Tottenham.
Kane is on course to break Wayne Rooney’s England goal record and become his country’s leading scorer.
Rooney holds the record with 53 goals, but Kane has scored 32 times in just 48 appearances.
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