England and Emile Smith Rowe are through to the semi finals of the u17 World Cup, after the Three Lions beat the USA 4-1 in India.

Smith Rowe was an unused substitute in the game, although he did appear in the previous two matches for England’s u17s against Japan and Iraq. In fact, he got himself on the score-sheet in the Iraq win, but that was his only start of the tournament so far.

England don’t yet know their semi-final opponents, as the quarter final between Brazil and Germany is yet to take place. However, it will be one of those two, so the young side will have a tough match-up either way.

Arsenal signed Emile Smith Rowe to a professional deal over the summer, and the 17-year-old has repaid their faith with some strong performances for the youth teams this season. In particular, Emile scored a hat-trick against West Ham, playing on the left-wing for the u18s.

The winger’s form was recognised by manager of the u23s Steve Gatting, who gave him his first start of the season for the Premier League 2 side in late September.

Although the u23s ended up losing that match 4-2, Smith Rowe’s rise at club level was evidently enough to get him a call-up for England at the ongoing international tournament. Good luck to him if he gets another chance in the semi-final!