3/1 To Win
Jason Knight is looking to use his experience from the UEFA Under-17 European Championship to progress towards Derby County's first team.
The Rams midfielder, 17, helped the Republic of Ireland earn a quarter-final tie with the Netherlands after playing the full 80 minutes in a 2-0 win at St George’s Park against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday.
“I thought we played really well,” he said assessing the game. “In the first half, we didn’t take our chances but in the second, Troy [Parrott, of Tottenham Hotspur] scored a great free kick and then Adam [Idah, Norwich City] finished it off. It was a battle, but we won it in the end."
The match was played out on a windy afternoon, and Knight acknowledged the conditions ultimately worked in Ireland’s favour.
“It worked well for us [on Friday],” he admitted. “The past week had been really hot and, with a bit of breeze, it was nice to run around in the cold weather for once.”
Knight has made 15 appearances for Derby’s Under-18 side and also featured several times for the Under-23s during the latter stages of the season.
“I just want to progress as much as I can every day and keep training and working hard,” he said. “One day, hopefully, the aim is to get into the first team.”
Derby's academy sides play some of their Premier League 2 Division 1 games at St George's Park and the familiar surroundings have helped Knight in this tournament based in the Midlands and South Yorkshire. The combative midfielder sees this 'home' advantage can be used to his – and Ireland’s – benefit.
He said: “I know St George’s fairly well because in the last few months, the U23s played a lot of games here.
“The facilities are magnificent; it will be good for us to use them and prepare for Monday night.”
Colin O’Brien’s outfit will be looking to progress further than they did last year – they lost to England in the quarter-final – when Ireland take on Netherlands at either Walsall or Chesterfield (venue due to be confirmed Friday night), and Knight is looking forward to it.
“We’re buzzing for that game," he said. "We’ll just get back to the hotel and do our homework on them, and hopefully we can go on and do the business on Monday night.”
Written by Hritika Sharma
