Platt's youngsters face Portugal
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Your support makes all the difference.David Platt's England Under-21 side will get a chance to run the rule over one of their rivals for the European crown in April. England will take on Portugal at Stoke's Britannia Stadium on 16 April in a game that could well be a rehearsal for a meeting in the European Under-21 Championship finals in Switzerland.
It will be Platt's last chance to put his players through their paces in an competitive match before they launch their bid for glory in May. And the coach knows the Portuguese will provide a stern test. "It will be a challenging encounter for us, but the team is quietly confident after qualifying," he said.
"However, we know it won't be easy against a very talented Portuguese team, who won a very difficult qualifying group ahead of the Netherlands and Ireland.
"It promises to be a very open and exciting match, and a great chance for fans in the Stoke area to see some top-class international football. We're really looking forward to playing at the Britannia Stadium and I'm sure we will get fantastic support."
Platt is currently preparing for the friendly trip to Slovenia on 12 February, which will be followed by a game against Italy at Bradford on 26 March. His players will head into that match knowing whether they will be meeting Portugal twice in quick succession because the the draw is in Switzerland on 25 February.
The two countries have already been drawn together in the qualifying round for the 2004 European Championship alongside Macedonia, Slovakia and Turkey.
Tickets for the game at the Britannia Stadium will go on sale on Monday. They are priced at £10 for adults and £5 for children and OAPs, and are available via a special England hotline on 0870 1690111. The tickets are also available from the Britannia Stadium ticket office and the Superstore, Hanley.
In the Dutch league, the Feyenoord midfielder Brett Emerton says he is using his performances as a shop window to set up a move to England. Feyenoord face Fortuna Sittard tonight and the highly-rated Australian is out to impress to follow his two goals in last weekend's 5-0 win over Roda JC Kerkrade. "I am still learning things here," said Emerton, who was linked with a move to Leeds United earlier in the season. "But it has always been my dream to play in England. The club promised me that we will talk when clubs are seriously interested in me."
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