Drinkwater retains Euro hope

Danny Drinkwater is hopeful that he can earn a place in England’s final 23-man squad for Euro 2016 after making his international debut in the 2-1 defeat to the Netherlands on Tuesday.

The Leicester midfielder played 84 minutes of the friendly match at Wembley and he was named man-of-the-match after impressing on his first senior appearance for the Three Lions.

Tuesday’s match was the last England will play before coach Roy Hodgson names his squad for the finals in France this summer and Drinkwater is hopeful that he is still in the reckoning to earn selection.

He said: “Hopefully I’ve not done myself any harm, it’s just about carrying on now until the end of the season, and seeing if I can add to it.”

The 26-year-old was pleased with his overall performance against the Dutch, but he acknowledged that there are still areas of his game that he needs to improve if he wants to become a permanent fixture in the national set-up.

He added: “A bit of game time helped me tonight, I was able get on the ball, so it’s been easy to settle into the squad. I enjoyed it, I saw plenty of the ball, but maybe could have moved it a bit faster. I enjoyed the position.”

England will face Russia, Wales and Slovakia in Group B of the finals and Drinkwater will be hoping to be part of the side that takes on the Russians in their opening group match at the Stade Velodrome on June 11.

Hodgson’s side are available at 2.20 to begin the tournament with a win, while a Russian victory and the draw are both priced at 3.10.