England U21s at Walsall: the stand-out performers

With the England Under-21s already qualified for the European Championship finals next summer and a number of regulars sidelined or called up to the senior squad, the spectators at the Bank's Stadium on Tuesday were given a taste of what the future could hold for England.

Here, Joe Williams looks at some of the stand-out performers from the youngsters' final qualifying match.

Christian Walton (goalkeeper)

Christian Walton had an assured game between the sticks.

The Brighton youngster, on-loan at Luton Town, had to step into the net vacated by Jordan Pickford, who was called up to the senior squad after Tom Heaton 's injury. Yet the 20-year-old proved his worth on his debut with two fantastic saves on the cusp of half-time. Although relatively untroubled for the remainder of the match, he kept his back four organised after Nathaniel Chalobah had to leave the field at the interval due to a knock.

Isaac Hayden (defensive midfielder)

Isaac Hayden of Hull City with Dave Edwards and Conor Coady of Wolverhampton Wanderers

The Newcastle United man proved his capabilities in his first game for England's under-21s. Featuring as a holding midfielder, the 21-year-old Arsenal academy graduate presented a measured attitude to his game with precise distribution and protected his defence with impressive interceptions.

John Swift (right midfield)

Stole the show in the first half with his long-range effort, which looped over the opposition goalkeeper to open the scoring. However, the Reading midfielder presented more than just his goal scoring ability to the game with some impressive interplay with his team-mates and direct runs in and around the penalty area.

Jack Grealish (attacking midfielder)

Jack Grealish is well-known in the Midlands and dominated the game.

A well-recognised name in the Midlands, but the talented 21-year-old from Solihull has only ever featured four times in the under-21 squad before Tuesday afternoon. Returning from a knee injury, the Villa youngster fought back and delivered a man-of-the-match performance where he was the heartbeat of every attack, creating three goals in the process.

Tammy Abraham (forward)

There is argument both Abraham and strike partner Duncan Watmore should feature, however, the former proved to be the more clinical when the opportunities arose. Currently on-loan to Bristol City from Chelsea, he proved why he is the current top scorer in the Championship with two impressive strikes either side of the interval.