Minutes later Krijestarac had to make another good save to deny Romain Esse’s bouncing shot, with the goalkeeper then denying the Millwall youngster’s curling effort shortly before half-time.
Gray’s set-piece deliveries were causing Montenegro problems and Jack Hinshelwood dived in to head agonisingly wide minutes prior to the interval.
England started the second half brightly and within the first six minutes, Lino Sousa and Adrian Blake both had shots from the left-hand side of the penalty box saved.
Ballard was next to have an effort from close range saved after a good run and pass from Jobe Bellingham.
Montenegro’s goal was living a charmed life, which was highlighted when Esse got back to his feet after being bundled over in the penalty area and hit a shot which was saved by the backheel of goalkeeper Krijestarac and trickled wide of the post.
It was a similar story when two substitutes combined, as Omari Kellyman laid the ball off to Nathan Lowe and his low shot from 15 yards out went wide by the narrowest of margins.
England continued to search for a goal but despite several nearly moments, they had to settle for a point.
England: 1 Luca Gunter (Tottenham Hotspur), 4 Jack Hinshelwood (Brighton & Hove Albion), 5 Ashley Phillips (Tottenham Hotspur) ©, 6 Max Alleyne (Manchester City), 8 Archie Gray (Leeds United), 9 Dominic Ballard (Reading, loan from Southampton), 10 Jobe Bellingham (Sunderland), 12 Sai Sachdev (Sheffield United), 17 Adrian Blake (Utrecht), 18 Lino Sousa (Arsenal), 20 Romain Esse (Millwall)
Substitutes: 14 Nathan Lowe (Stoke City) for Ballard 65, 11 Omari Kellyman (Aston Villa) for Sachdev 65, 3 Calum Scanlon (Liverpool) for Esse 83
Substitutes not used: 13 Ben Cisse (West Bromwich Albion), 2 Ezra Carrington (Manchester City), 15 Alfie Dorrington (Tottenham Hotspur), 16 Noel Buck (New England Revolution), 19 Kane Taylor (Manchester City)
Head coach: Simon Rusk
2023-10-11 18:00:54
#Match #report #England #MU19s #Montenegro
