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England Under-19's were knocked out in the semi-final stage of the U19 European Championships in Germany after a 2-1 defeat to Italy.

The Young Lions, unlike the senior side, looked convincing in the group stages of the competition, progressing with a 100 percent record with victories over France, Holland and Croatia.

With the format of the competition, England progressed immediately to the semi-finals of the competition where they met the Azzuri.

Aidy Boothroyd's men who despite enjoying long periods of possessionwere unable to break downtheir opposition who defended in typical Italian fashion.

📰 #YoungLions miss out on a spot in #U19EURO Final after a 2-1 defeat to a resolute @azzurri side in Mannheim https://t.co/6tnmRaya8Z

Italian defender Federico Dimarco opened the scoring in the 27th minute from the penalty spot after Andrea Favilla was felled by Chelsea's Fikayi Tomori.

The spot kick was the third time Dimarco had converted from twelve yards at the tournamentin just his side's fourth game.

The young defender doubled the Italians lead on the hour mark this time netting from a free-kick, taking his tally to four goals for the tournament - the second highest in the competition as the Azzuri reached their first U19 final since 2008.

The Young Lions had 21 attempts on goal, hitting the target on just four occasions, however hope was restored after Alberto Picchi's redirected a clearance from Liverpool's Sheyi Ojo's corner past goalkeeper Alex Meret.

📰 Aidy Boothroyd says his side have learned some valuable lessons from their #U19EURO semi-final defeat to @azzurri https://t.co/Flcb4HdKG4

However the goal came too late as Boothroyd's side succumbed to theirthird semi-final exit. They had previously lost to Greece in 2012 and a Spanish side consisting of Marc Batra, Thiago and Koke in 2010.

Whilst difficult to take for the moment,England's exit does howeverguarantee them of their place at next year's U20 World Cup.