Jadon Sancho is set to become the first player born in 2000 to play for England if he features in either of the Nations League matches against Croatia or Spain.
The 18-year-old, who was born on March 25, 2000, has been in excellent form for Borussia Dortmund so far this season and his reward was a place in the senior Three Lions squad announced by Gareth Southgate last week.
Here, Press Association Sport looks back at some other similar England landmarks.
First player born in the 1990s to play for England – Jack Wilshere
Wilshere, born on New Year’s Day 1992, made his senior debut for England in a friendly against Hungary on August 11, 2010, the first match England had played after the disappointment of their last-16 exit to Germany in the World Cup in South Africa. He came on as an 82nd-minute replacement for Steven Gerrard in a 2-1 win.
Injuries have limited his international appearances since, with his last coming in the shock defeat to Iceland at Euro 2016. Wilshere was the first of five players born in the 1990s to be given senior debuts over the next 14 months, with Jordan Henderson, Kyle Walker, Danny Welbeck and Phil Jones all following by October 2011.
First player born in the 1980s to play for England – Jonathan Woodgate
The Leeds defender secured the honour of being the first child of the ’80s to play a senior England match when he started the European Championship qualifier away to Bulgaria in Sofia on June 9, 1999. As with Wilshere, injuries had a huge impact on his career, and this proved to be the first of just eight senior caps.
He was followed by Gareth Barry, Steven Gerrard and Alan Smith, who all made their debuts in or before September 2000.
First player born in the 1970s to play for England – Lee Sharpe
Manchester United prodigy Sharpe won his first cap aged 19 in a Euro 92 qualifier against the Republic of Ireland on March 27, 1991.
Sharpe, who was born on May 27, 1971, won eight caps in total with the last of them coming in the 2-0 defeat to Holland in October 1993 which effectively spelt the end for England’s hopes of qualifying for the 1994 World Cup.
First player born in the 1960s to play for England – Gary Mabbutt
The Tottenham defender was born on August 23, 1961 and made his senior bow on October 13, 1982 in a friendly against West Germany.
Mabbutt never appeared for England in a major finals and won the last of his 13 caps in a European Championship qualifier against Yugoslavia in November 1986.
First player born in the 1900s to play for England – Jimmy Dimmock
Dimmock was just 20 when he featured for England in a 3-0 defeat to Scotland at Hampden in April 1921. Two weeks later he wrote himself into Tottenham history by scoring the winning goal in the FA Cup final win over Wolves at Stamford Bridge. He would play two more games for England, the last of them in 1926.
Player with the earliest date of birth to play for England – Alexander Morten
Morten made his one and only England appearance in their second-ever international match at the age of 41 years and 114 days, a 4-2 win over Scotland at the Kennington Oval in March 1873 close to where Sancho grew up well over 120 years later.
Morten’s birth date is recorded by englandstats.com as November 15, 1831, which makes him the earliest-born player ever to play international football. At the time of his solitary England appearance he was with the amateur Crystal Palace side. He worked as a stockbrocker, and died in February 1900.
