West Brom's Rekeem Harper keen to emulate England stars

But for midfielder Rekeem Harper, the tournament is going to further fuel his desire to become a regular at Albion once and for all.

The 21-year-old previously represented England at under-17 and under-19 level.

In those junior sides he played with both Phil Foden and Jadon Sancho – two players who have the potential to shine for the Three Lions over the coming weeks.

And seeing their success is making Harper even more determined to realise his potential.

The Birmingham-born star will report for pre-season training with the Baggies having spent the second half of last season on loan at Blues.

And not only does Harper want to come back and force his way into the side, he also wants to make sure the club secures an instant return to the Premier League.

"Every young player wants to play for their country so I’m really grateful for the opportunities I got with the under-17s and the under-19s," he said.

"They were really talented groups.

"You see the likes of Phil (Foden), (Jadon) Sancho, (Callum) Hudson-Odoi doing things now.

"I remember going away with England and looking at those players and thinking this is the level you want to be at every week.

"I remember being in and around the West Brom first-team, you’d think going away to play with younger players would be like playing under-23s football again.

"But the standard with England was like playing in the first-team. Everyone was trying to impress, everybody had quality.

"It made me think I want to have opportunities like this again.

"We had the best kids in the country. Phil (Foden), (Jadon) Sancho, (Callum) Hudson-Odoi, there were so many talented young players.

"To see them all do so well now makes me really happy and hopefully one day I can get back to playing at the top level with some of those guys.

"It’s a really special memory I hold."