The UEFA U21 European Championships are just around the corner, and here you’ll find out more about the competition and the Arsenal players looking to win it.

Held in Poland, the European Championships will start on Friday, June 16. The opening game will be played at Kielce between the current holders Sweden and England at 17:00 GMT.

Arsenal’s defensive duo Rob Holding and Calum Chambers will hope to start and lead England to a winning start in the competition.

Holding had a decent season for Arsenal, having played a significant role in the team’s most recent FA Cup triumph.

He made 18 appearances and is slowly establishing himself as a viable first team option under Arsene Wenger. Holding made his England U21 debut last summer and has since made five appearances.

As for Chambers, the 22-year-old spent last season on loan at Middlesbrough, making 27 appearances. He’s played through all youth ranks of England and even made three senior appearances for the national team.

Krystian Bielik will hope to make a contribution to Poland’s success as hosts of the upcoming European Championship.

Bielik spent second half of last season on loan at Birmingham, making 10 appearances. The 19-year-old has represented Poland at all age levels and is one of the younger players to have been included in the squad.

Poland have their first game of the tournament on 16 June (19:45 GMT) against Slovakia. England and Poland are both in Group A and will play each other on the final day of the Group stage.

Spain will have their first game of the tournament on Saturday, June 17 against FYR Macedonia, with Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin one of the key players for Spain in this tournament.

This will be Bellerin’s last chance to play for the U21s given his age. The 22-year-old was ever-present for Arsenal last season, making a total of 42 appearances in all competitions, scoring and creating six goals.

Spain are in Group B alongside Serbia, FYR Macedonia and Portugal.