Young Hatters add to England caps.
Zack Nelson and Joe Johnson enjoy successful England camps.
Luton Town academy graduates Zack Nelson and Joe Johnson added to their growing collection of England age group caps over the international break.
The Hatters duo went away with the Men’s Elite League Squad (formerly Under-20s) and U19s respectively, and both gained further experience with their national teams – Zack winning his second and third caps, while Joe took his tally to 11 in total since his U17 debut a year ago.
Zack started as Paul Nevin’s squad secured a 2-1 win over Italy in the Stadio Benito Stirpe last Thursday, with our 19-year-old playing the full 90 minutes as goals from Plymouth Argyle’s Manchester City loanee Darko Gyabi and a late winner from K.A.A. Gent forward Max Dean secured all three points.
Midfielder Zack then played his part as a 65th-minute substitute in Monday’s 3-0 win over Czechia, with Dean scoring two more before assisting the third for Norwich City’s Kaide Gordon at Doncaster’s Eco-Power Stadium.
Joe travelled to Spain with the Under-19s and played his part in all three of Will Antwi’s squad’s friendlies over at the Marbella Sports Centre.
He went on as a 74th-minute substitute in the 2-1 defeat to Portugal last Wednesday, before starting and playing the first 74 minutes of the 4-1 win over the Netherlands on Saturday.
Our 18-year-old defender then completed a successful camp by playing an hour in the 4-2 victory over France as the Young Lions wrapped up their preparations for the UEFA Euro U19 qualifiers that begin next month.
Meanwhile, midfielder Marvelous Nakamba captained Zimbabwe to a 1-0 victory over Namibia in a match played behind closed doors at Johannesburg’s Orlando Stadium, before being rested for Monday’s return fixture at the same venue, which our Marv’s Warriors won 3-1.
That triumph saw Zimbabwe return to second position in Group J of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers with eight points, two behind Cameroon who are on ten points.
The top two teams from the group will qualify for the finals, with Zimbabwe now needing just two points from the remaining two games to secure their passage to the tournament in Morocco.
