Gareth Southgate excited by potential of England youngsters

The England boss has refused to place any limits on the youngsters breaking into his senior international side - or the starlets from England's World Cup-winning Under-17s and Under-20s.

Southgate has challenged England to build a winning mentality, which he firmly believes can be boosted by the under-17s seeing off Spain 5-2 to claim their world title and the under-20s faring likewise in defeating Venezuela 1-0.

"The younger teams, if they're strong and they have success, and are in the habit of winning, it's going to breed belief - belief and also expectation," Southgate told Sky Sports News.

"So for a long time we've been going into tournaments, worrying about what might happen and a little bit I think sometimes we've forgotten about going to try and win.

"We've got to try and shift the mindset. It's fundamental.

"And with those young players coming through, the experience of winning against other nations, the experience of winning in tournament situations, that can only be good for us moving forward and we have belief in those young players.

"And although there's always a risk in bringing young players in, they bring an energy and an enthusiasm which I think has captivated everybody.

"I don't think it's for me to put a limit on what they might achieve. Over the next few years for these guys I believe anything is possible.

"Whether next summer, if you look historically at the number of caps of successful teams and the experiences of successful teams, whether we'd be at that level yet remains to be seen.

"We haven't beaten the top teams in our last few games but we are competitive in those games, so I've got to encourage them and give them the platform to go and express themselves. They are embracing that.

"There's still a long way for this group to go and there's a lot of improvement needed."

England, meanwhile, have been handed second-seeding status ahead of the draw for the inaugural UEFA Nations League.

Southgate's men have been placed in Pot Two in League A, along with France, Switzerland and Italy, ahead of the January 24 draw in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Germany, Portugal, Belgium and Spain have been installed in Pot One and handed top billing, while Poland, Iceland, Croatia and Holland are in Pot Three for League A.

The Nations League will largely replace international friendlies, with teams split into four groups of three. The group winners will contest the UEFA Nations League finals, in June 2019.

Wales have been placed in Pot One for League B, alongside Austria, Russia and Slovakia.

Republic of Ireland are in League B's Pot Two, along with Sweden, Ukraine and Bosnia.

And Northern Ireland have been placed into Pot Three of League B, with Denmark, Turkey and the Czech Republic.

Scotland are down in League C, placed in Pot One, with Hungary, Romania and Slovenia.

Greece, Serbia, Albania and Norway comprise League C's Pot Two, with Montenegro, Israel, Bulgaria and Finland in Pot Three and Cyprus, Estonia and Lithuania in Pot Four.